Architecture and interior design practice Templeton Ford has completed Clay Rise, a three-bedroom house in the village of West Hoathly, West Sussex, England. Established in 2025, the project marks the studio’s architectural debut. The house explores the relationship between local building traditions and contemporary form, expressed through a tiered roofline and a contextually driven material palette.
A design shaped by place
Clay Rise reflects Templeton Ford’s approach to craftsmanship, materiality, and place. The house is shaped by the character of West Hoathly, where clay-tiled cottages, handmade brickwork, and a strong tradition of craft inform the local built environment. These references guided both the architectural language and material choices. Andre Ford, Founding Director at Templeton Ford, said: “Clay Rise is a versatile family home that has allowed us to explore ideas we’ve been developing for many years. We sought to create a house that is entirely of its place, informed by a close understanding of its context and local craft traditions.”
Form, materials, and site
The house balances heritage and contemporary expression, drawing on the solid presence of traditional Sussex brick buildings while introducing a curved, sloping roofline. Layered curves descend from the roof pitch to frame windows across all three storeys, opening views towards neighbouring fields and the South Downs beyond. This interplay of mass and curvature gives the building a distinctive profile, while remaining grounded in the scale, texture, and material character of its surroundings.
The material language of Clay Rise is closely tied to its location. The house is constructed using a prefabricated, panelised timber frame system, selected for precision, speed, affordability, and environmental performance, and erected on site in just two weeks.
Local bricks, made from the same clay found beneath the site, form the external envelope. A continuous datum line wraps around the building, marking the junction between brickwork and red clay roof tiles. At the rear, additional brick courses are used where the house is set 1.5 metres into the hillside.
By embedding the house into the site, Templeton Ford created a split-level internal arrangement and a natural grassy slope to the rear garden. This anchors the building within the landscape while enabling the more pronounced curved form that defines the rear elevation.
Internal arrangement and character
Originally conceived as a multigenerational family house, the split-level plan allows Clay Rise to operate as two independent dwellings. A self-contained two-bedroom apartment occupies the ground floor, while the main living accommodation sits above, including the living room, kitchen, and primary bedroom suite with long views across the surrounding landscape.
Internally, the house is shaped by light, continuity, and tactility. Curves introduced by the roof form are carried through the interiors, establishing a consistent spatial language. A curved CNC-cut staircase, finished in lime plaster, forms the primary internal threshold and leads to the main living spaces above.
Lime-plastered walls continue throughout the house, paired with exposed timber elements and stone floors. Deep sapele timber window reveals frame views of the landscape and sky, while curved forms reappear in bespoke joinery, handmade plaster wall lights, and the sweeping rooflines visible from the main living area and bedroom suite.
Environmental strategies and building performance
Passive environmental principles informed both the building’s form and its detailing. The house is oriented to optimise solar gain and shading, with a deep south-facing window allowing low winter sun to penetrate the interior while moderating summer overheating. Natural cross-ventilation is supported through operable east–west openings, while a central stair atrium functions as a thermal chimney, drawing warm air upwards to support year-round comfort.
Heating and hot water are provided by an air source heat pump, supported by high levels of insulation and double-glazed windows. Material reuse was incorporated where possible, including the integration of second-hand kitchen and utility fittings. Timber off-cuts from the prefabricated frame were reused on site as custom joinery.
Adaptability and future use
Clay Rise was designed to accommodate changing household needs over time. Services such as underfloor heating, lighting circuits, and wiring layouts were planned to support future reconfiguration. The main bedroom can be subdivided to create an additional bedroom, while living areas can be separated to function independently, accommodating family members, carers, or lodgers.
The ground floor apartment may also operate as a home office or as a primary bedroom suite with generous storage, allowing the building to evolve without major structural intervention.
Through careful attention to form, materials, and long-term use, the building is designed to sit comfortably within its landscape while remaining adaptable to future patterns of living.
