Extension plans (with pics)

[GVmama]

We are planning an extension and would love some feedback on the plans, we have no experience of planning anything like this and really want to get it right. We're at the stage that the architect has drawn up plans and we're submitting them to planning soon.
We live in a 3 bed detached farmhouse (not listed) and from the build we hope to gain:
A fourth bedroom with ensuite
A large kitchen diner
A playroom
A 'snug'

We own the land all around the house so can build anywhere except along the current kitchen/ living room exterior wall where there is a public footpath on the other side.

We're worried about natural light in the hall/ stairs/landing but can't see a way around it.

Any feedback or suggestions for improvement would be gratefully received!

I've attached plans showing the current layout and proposed layout.

Would it be feasible to swap the "kitchen" and "diner" ends of the room around when you have your extension, so visitors don't walk straight into the kitchen with its unwashed dishes and mess (if it's anything like my kitchen!). The diner end of the room would probably be more likely to be tidy I imagine, whereas the kitchen always looks "lived in" if you do much cooking.

Re light, how about a skylight in the landing? This would allow natural light in, and some might even filter down to the hall (depending on the layout of your house).

I’m struggling to see a bit on my iPad so apologies if this is all wrong. New proposed entrance is through kitchen? Don’t like that at all if is the case and would put new front door where toilet is, that and utility become part of Hall (or you could squeeze small toilet in somewhere) then proposed porch is utility room off kitchen. That way you’d have all the main receptions with access from hall.

Re landing what is on other side of wall over the stair case?

Thanks loads, it would definitely be possible to change the kitchen and diner parts around, although there is a large (and v beautiful) fireplace in the current living room taking up most of one wall which we felt might be easier to incorporate into a diner space than a kitchen. I'll see what OH and the architect think.

@PostNotInHaste I like your thinking, but that would make the main entrance at the side of the house rather than at the front, and we were hoping to add a bit of kerb appeal with the big oak porch at the front. It's not an attractive house from the approach and I worry if we approached it side-on it wouldn't look great, and people wouldn't know where to go for the entrance! It's worth a discussion with OH/ architect though thanks.
Not sure what you're asking re landing?

I'll go against the grain here but I think it's quite nice to come straight into the kitchen. It's also practical imho. Besides from the plan it looks like that will become the hub of the house so why not?

Get an Architect involved if you want to do it properly! They aren't expensive.

I was wondering if you could put a window in that wall by the stairs ?

Hear what you're saying about front of the house and understand . I'd consider then having proposed snug and dining room as kitchen diner.

Then where new bit of extension is come out a little further. Have new front door hall joining to existing hall plus new snug.

We're in the middle of extension and reorganising downstairs so have done kind of similar. Old front door was at side now on front in the middle of what living room which is moving sideways into new extension giving us snug, hall plus living room. Early days but looking like it's going to work well .

If you did what I was suggesting and made the extension a bit longer to accommodate a new Hall and snug then upstairs your master bedroom could be a bit bigger (depending on how roof works I guess ) and then you could have a bit of landing between bed 1 and master bedroom with window to front to give light?

Agree it's worth getting architect. Ours was £900 on recommendation from friend and ended up drawing what I suggested as was the most sensible layout but he smoothed the way through planning, organised structural engineer and did building regs for us.

That's what I was hoping @FrolickingForklift we want the kitchen/ diner to be the heart of the home, and we're fairly tidy so guests won't be walking into a bombsite most of the time!! The big 10ft wide porch will become the entrance area, so people won't walk straight into the kitchen.

I'm worried the kitchen could become a thoroughfare for kids going to the playroom or upstairs, and back.

@PostNotInHaste We had considered the proposed snug and dining room becoming the kitchen/ diner and could still do that. The proposed snug is currently a really dark kitchen, with a huge fireplace/ wood burning stove and lots of wood beams on the ceiling. The stove heats all the radiators in the house and was recently installed at huge cost, so it needs to stay where it is. I felt that the dark, very warm and cosy room lent itself more to a snug than a kitchen. As its currently the kitchen, that would presumably stay the kitchen end, as it has all the drains etc. My husband was in favour of your idea.

I think I’d change the entrance to the side where you utility room is as per PP suggestion. I think goingnin through the kitchen will get on your nerves as you’re right, it will become a thoroughfare and people will seek a “corridor”.

You can still have plenty of kerb appeal by having a side entrance with oak porch etc.

Yes see what you’re saying but just tossing ideas around, knocking them together likely to lighten up the kitchen. That window in your current lounge, could that become French doors ? (Assuming it is a window and not doors) And there’s a knobbly bit on the front of your lounge, what’s that? Could there be an extra window there if you had it all as one room?

Very personal thing house layout I guess but having teens I really would not want everyone coming in via the kitchen.

As Deux said with side entrance it’s just how you do the landscaping, loads you can do. I do get why you’d prefer it on the front though. You’ve got options, important to take your time to get the one that ultimately you are happiest with and feel will work best as you are going to be the one living in it.

Make the porch into the utility room and put the front door where the utulity room is and put a front porch on there?

Agree with above about avoiding walking straight into the kitchen. That wouldn't be ideal. Also is there a way you can get a doorway from the hall into the games room? It's not great having to walk through a utility to access any living space.

Walking straight into the kitchen isn't so much of an issue but having it the corridor to the rest of the house is.

Could you have a smart front entrance (which you hardly use) for kerb appeal and a non smart side entrance which you use all the time as a family? I know quite a few country houses which work this way.

Agree with skylight above the stairwell, we have this and it throws tons of light down.

Yes, with the skylight, you can have it set in the roof but with a "chimney" going through the attic, casting the light down to the landing. This "chimney" is in the shape of a flat-topped pyramid rather than rectangular, ie wider at the bottom than the top. The walls are painted (eggshell?) white to reflect the maximum amount of light down to the landing. My parents have this arrangement and the landing is bright and airy, whereas it would certainly be rather dark and dingy without. A skylight is on my wishlist for my own house!

I agree with pps that the porch should be the utility room off the kitchen and the utility off the hall should be the entrance.

Huge thanks to everyone who's had a look at the plans and taken time to comment. It looks like most people don't think it's a good idea for the main entrance to be at the front coming into the kitchen, so we'll have to give that a bit more thought.

I've attached the plans of the current and proposed front of the house, I'm worried that it'll end up being an even more ugly building from the driveway if we have the porch entrance at the side of the house...

@PostNotInHaste the nobbly bit sticking out on the current living room is the fireplace. When you see the plans from the front it'll make sense.

Forgot the pic, current front of house at the top and proposed underneath

Don’t know about anyone else but can’t see a picture.

You can see them in the app. You can still do that OP but have that as the entrance to the utility room. You can use paving and fencing to direct people to the actual front door.

I agree with PPs I'm not keen on the entrance through the kitchen, also I appreciate you want a 'snug' but there doesn't seem to be much of a living room/lounge with that layout.

I've tried to do a suggestion - not sure if this would work with your roof lines/drainage etc but might give you some ideas to think about. I would basically make the main entrance set back in the centre so it leads directly to the hall/stairs with double doors each side to the kitchen/diner and lounge/snug, that would bring light into the hallway and I think make it 'flow' better. If you don't like the set back bit then you could just do it all in line or just slightly set back.

Apologies for the quality of the pic, hope it makes sense

Elevation pictures appeared overnight. Having seen them with the chimney and the drainage for ensuite I don’t personally think the central front door will work very well without a lot of other changes.

Agree with Wowfudge, that side entrance best. I think if you can though I wouldn’t have that door on the front of the porch and have that as a big window and then if possible have a door to the utility on the side of the porch ( left as facing house) as think it will be more obvious that front door else where. Then plants on front of house over top of porch and to cover chimney stack and nice paving to create path round to the front door at side. Planting and paving will make a big difference and it will look lovely when you pull up outside .

You could look at having big planters to the right of the porch and in front of chimney .

You say you have used an architect, but the plans seem very uninspired for an architect. Was your brief to not really change the existing house? Or has the architect just draw up your ideas rather than putting forward any of their own.
I would expected a decent architect to have wanted to move the front door to the side creating a grand entrance into the hall and stairs to give an initial feeling of space on entering the house with then the rooms coming off the hall.
They have done virtually nothing to improve the layout of upstairs apart from stealing part of bedroom 1 to make the ensuite. Your current bathroom could be made jack and Jill between 1 and 3 and two ensures could be created one for the master and one for bedroom 2.
Finally in this day and age I would expect an architect worth their salt to include clever storage and I can see none.

Maybe the architect is really a drafts person- the latter are fine for drawing up your ideas for planning permission but an architect will have more vision. It looks like a great house with huge potential.
Our old house had its front door on the side (was built like that in 1850) and it worked perfectly. People know where to go.

Thanks loads. Maybe (as I suspected) the issue is with the architect. He's an old family friend of DH, and doesn't seem to be much of an ideas person. He's drawn these initial plans after meeting with us and measuring up etc. It definitely needs more thought and input from someone with a bit more vision. Thanks again for sharing your input and vision