Westview Cottage sits within the stark landscape of Dungeness, a place shaped by weather, improvisation and buildings that have slowly evolved over time.
The original house had grown through a series of extensions and outbuildings, leaving behind a fragmented plan, low ceilings and structural issues. But despite its shortcomings, there was something worth preserving in the way it had developed incrementally, reflecting the ad hoc character of Dungeness itself.
The brief was to create a contemporary family home with open plan living, three bedrooms and stronger connections to the surrounding landscape and distant lighthouses, while retaining the sense that the house had been assembled gradually over time rather than conceived as a single gesture. “The aim was to create something that functioned seamlessly internally but externally read as a series of separate forms,” says Mike Pearson, architect and partner.
Strict planning constraints within Dungeness required the replacement dwelling to closely follow the footprint, ridgeline and overall massing of the original building. The design works within these limitations by absorbing the existing outbuildings into a new arrangement that transforms a series of disconnected rooms into a calm and cohesive home organised around light, movement and framed views.
Arrival through the house is deliberately choreographed. Views open westwards towards the lighthouse beyond, immediately establishing a connection to the landscape. The kitchen, dining and living spaces sit beneath the full height of the roof as one continuous volume, balanced by quieter bedrooms looking south across the garden and coastline.
Materials were chosen in response to the textures already embedded within Dungeness. White painted, charred timber replaces the failing render and mock Tudor detailing of the original house, creating a durable surface that will continue to weather over time, “improving with age; improving as it weathers,” says Mike. Black corrugated aluminium and stabilised corten steel draw from the industrial remnants and rusted artefacts scattered throughout the surrounding coastline. Inside, salt and pepper ground polished concrete floor exposes the pebbles to emulate the shingle beach, while natural timber and polished plaster soften the interior against the harsher coastal setting beyond.
Rather than appearing as a singular object placed onto the landscape, Westview Cottage is intended to feel embedded within the evolving fabric of Dungeness, another layer added to its ongoing story.
