The Old Rectory is a Grade II listed house on the edge of Sweffling, and is part of a loose group of historic buildings that includes Sweffling Lodge and the Church of St Mary. It has a layered history. A red brick range holds 16th or 17th century fabric, the 18th century core sits at the centre, and an 1831 remodelling added white brick, a slate roof and a Regency veranda.

Working for new owners, our proposals build on an existing consent to rethink the service courtyard on the north side of the house. A modest extension and a series of alterations bring underused yard and storage space back into use and open the kitchen up to the gardens. They also create a generous, informal family kitchen and dining room. It gives the household a relaxed everyday counterpart to the formal Regency rooms, which the family can use every day.