The Holkham Estate is a rich, diverse and historic landscape in Norfolk. Our work on its centrepiece, the Grade 1 listed Holkham Hall, has acted as a catalyst for the Estate’s regeneration. Our scheme sensitively restores and adapts existing buildings to radically transform the estate’s offer, clarify its historic significance, and improve visitor facilities, staff accommodation and wayfinding.

Undertaking extensive negotiations with Historic England, and North Norfolk District Council, our strategy was to do the least to create the most benefit. We removed some of the more recent additions that were not in keeping with the historical buildings and repurposed the existing fabric through careful intervention and integration. Construction work was planned around Holkham Hall’s opening season.

The listed, but under-used, Stables and Potteries buildings have been developed to create a new events space and expand and improve the existing museum, café, shop, education and office accommodation.

Sustainability was at the core of our strategy to create a set of efficient, flexible spaces, useful for many years to come. A biomass boiler, fuelled by wood from the estate, incentivises the proper management of the local woodland, and underfloor heating and natural ventilation has minimised the energy consumption of the refurbished buildings. A bespoke natural ventilation strategy in the pottery building, with night cooling, allows the venue to be used through the summer without the need for air conditioning. Low energy lighting strategies feature dimming and presence detection to further minimise energy consumption. Significant parts of the construction, particularly roof slates and brickwork, were recycled from previously demolished buildings on the Estate. Joinery was painted using locally produced linseed oil paint with no artificial chemical constituents.