Howells’ has completed a contextually-sensitive and materially-rich pavilion restaurant at the National Trust’s Hanbury Hall in Worcestershire.
Designed by Howells, in collaboration with heritage expert Donald Insall Associates, The Courtyard Kitchen, is a pavilion restaurant located alongside the National Trust’s Hanbury Hall in Worcestershire. The single-storey structure is connected to the Grade I-listed stately home via a glazed link, reanimating the historic courtyard, improving accessibility, and revealing never seen before areas of the Hall, such as the service bells.
Locally-sourced handmade clay tiles wrap the roof and walls in a continuous skin, complementing the colour and materiality of the adjacent Hall. A long, low hipped-roof reflects the form of the existing roofscape, while simple massing and detailing further evoke the existing architecture of the courtyard. A glazed, post-and-beam ‘porch’ elevation of untreated oak, sourced from the National Trust’s nearby Brockhampton Estate, connects to a sheltered, sandstone-paved courtyard.
As part of a strategy to improve access and enhance the visitor experience, the design reinstates a tall archway in the stable block opposite, opening up a new vista along the estate’s parkland. The restaurant also benefits from renewable energy in the form of two new biomass boilers recently installed on site to power the underfloor heating and hot water.
The interior picks up the datum and proportions of the Hall’s historic panelled rooms. A coordinated palette of painted wainscotting, exposed timber ceiling beams, fine timber battening, and light-reflecting glazed wall tiles extend across the new spaces. Subtle shades of green emphasise Hanbury’s extensive garden views, as well as the tones, textures and rhythms of its historic staterooms.
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