Fully completed just last year, Castle Hill is a beautiful new-build is ready to welcome new owners
Laurence Colcommons, owner of construction company Kilmal, in Cheadle, built Castle Hill himself, 'working closely with Calderpeel Architects and using my own building teams,' he says. 'I built it to suit our lifestyle wishes.
‘We have two small daughters, so the home was designed to meet the needs of a young family, with safe play spaces designed outside, but also with it being a lifetime home, too – to work for a family who want to live here for the whole of their lives. It’s all on one level, there are five bedrooms (three en suite), and the doorways are all designed to suit a wheelchair user.’
A forever home indeed.
‘I build a lot of houses,’ Laurence adds. ‘It’s a real passion, and I don’t build for an imaginary family, like many developers, but I build for my family. Everything has to be perfect; for me, it’s not about using the most expensive materials, but using the best and the ones that give that perfect finish I seek. The real key is quality workmanship. It’s all in the detail, and I want it to be flawless, which you can see from the moment you walk through the door.’
The house has been cleverly designed to place the sleeping areas in one wing and the living areas: kitchen/dining, utility room (though the term barely does justice to this fabulous space), living room, and gym slightly apart, linked by the entrance hallway. Apart from the clever design, one thing immediately apparent when entering this beautiful home is the vast amount of natural light flooding into every room, and in particular the open plan kitchen-living area.
‘I think this was the best decision we made on this build,’ Laurence says. ‘We chose to have vaulted ceilings in all the open-plan areas and with the two outer walls of the living room being fully glass, as well as the end of the kitchen, with extra roof windows above the cooking area, the whole space is just filled with light. When we did the lighting plan, we very carefully chose to fit uplighting here, rather than the more traditional downlights and wall lights, and it works really well. There’s no glare as you get from pendant lights, but a diffuse light that is as functional as you need it and aesthetically pleasing, too.’
The house is south-west facing, so benefits from the sun all day, and allowed Laurence to build in a permanent canopy over the terrace.
‘We added a huge canopy to protect from the sun (and the rain) and it’s just brilliant being able to sit out there. It stops the house from overheating and an extended roofline over the kitchen windows prevents it from getting too hot in there and stops the glare, too.
‘We also invested heavily in smart technology for environmental control. Underfloor heating runs throughout and maintains a really comfortable ambient temperature. There’s no need to keep changing the thermostat here like in an older home. The house has been built so carefully it’s really, really well insulated.’
So, what will Laurence miss most about this house, once he moves on?
‘Oh, there’s lots we’ll miss, I think. The sense of space is immense, like nowhere else we’ve lived – the way the light floods into the rooms and how airy and open it all feels. Getting the flow of light right was a tricky challenge, first finding the right plot on which to build, then designing and angling the house to make it work as we envisioned.
‘I will miss living here. I am a keen road cyclist, and in less than a minute you're into the beautiful, quiet Cheshire lanes of Prestbury, Alderley Edge, Mottram St Andrew, and into the Peak District and beyond. Being here it’s so rural, yet so close to everything we could need for shopping or eating out.’
So, why are Laurence and his family selling this glorious home?
‘I love living here,’ he smiles, ‘but I just love building luxury homes and I can’t resist building new homes for myself. It’s the whole process, from finding the plot to designing the house to enjoying the end result for a while. Then I get the itch and I’m off to do it all over again. My wife is very patient; she says as long as she never needs to live in a building site she’s fine with regular moves.
‘This is what I do and if I build a home to be perfect for my family, I know it will be perfect for another family.’
The property is for sale for £2.95m through Andrew J Nowell & Company, Alderley Edge.
andrewjnowell.co.uk
