Starting From Scratch

A simple plan to renovate a tired bungalow escalated into a major self-build project for Bobby and Marcus Twidale

- Amander Meade

Bobby Twidale and her husband Marcus were looking for a new home with little or no work left to do. After viewing more than 30 potential homes with no luck, the couple decided to expand their search to include renovation projects. Eventually, a Seventies chalet-style bungalow in a pretty Leicestershire village caught Bobby’s eye. ‘I could see vast potential to extend, due to the significant size of the plot,’ she says. With the sale agreed, the couple submitted plans for alterations to the existing building only to be informed that the old bungalow’s foundations were insubstantial. The investigation revealed that demolition and a complete rebuild was the only option.