Side-return extensions

An efficient use of redundant outside space, extending to the side is the mart way to gain the extra room you crave and transform the way you live

- JENNIFER GRIMBLE

STATEMENT TILES 

This playful and vibrant side-return extension has created a light and modern kitchen and living space at the back of the house. It has turned the ground floor from dark and uninviting to bright and open plan. Bursting with personality, the exterior is clad in blue encaustic tiles, with a frameless pivot door leading to the garden. Inside, light wooden floors and pastel walls have been paired with coral structural beams, dusky-blue kitchen units and vivid terrazzo worktops.

Cost & Contacts Project cost: £95,000 Design: James Dale Architects (jamesdalearchitects.com)

Chances are that, if you live in a terraced house, you have a side return – a small, perhaps redundant strip of land at the back and side of your home. This often dark, awkward area is rarely used to its full potential, making it ripe for repurposing. By extending into it, you can use the full width of your plot, turning an idle pathway into valuable space without impacting your garden.