Homes & Gardens August 2023

'Incorporate as many environmental strategies for your pool house at the planning stage,' says James Bell of Richmond Bell Architects. 'This pool and Pilates studio is heated with recessed solar panels in the roof, which help maintain its sleek lines, and a biomass boiler and pellet hopper - the latter were installed as part of a community heating scheme and also heat a nearby church. In addition we've used reclaimed wood from the neighbouring Old Rectory for doors and joinery, and sustainably harvested larch timber cladding and insulated wall panels made from spruce.' The result is a beautiful, warm building with low running costs that treads lightly on the environment.