Harpenden Architects

Before London’s economic supremacy in the southeast, Hertfordshire reigned supreme. The Romans established Verulanium near present-day St Albans and it became the third largest city in Britain. Settlers there branched out into what is now Harpenden, and the area was overtaken by family farms and woodland. After the arrival of the Normans to Britain, populations flourished in Harpenden. And the region benefitted as London began to expand northward. St Nicholas Church, set back from the high street, goes back to the 13th century.

Until the railways established a link between London and Harpenden, the town was a great employer of women who wove straw for boaters and bonnets. Yet soon the town’s pretty geography became a destination for Londoners into horse-racing and golfing. Eventually they settled here to live. Today the Thameslink train line connects Harpenden to London’s St Pancras Station in about 25 minutes.

The allure for home-buyers is not only its accessibility to London but the outstanding state and prep schools, sports centres, green spaces and heritage pubs. Harpenden has its share of Georgian properties yet the lion’s share is Edwardian and mid-century – some of the best-preserved period homes fan out from the church green. The mix of Victorian and postwar building stock gives the town a comfortable suburban roominess within an urban setting.

Landscaping was increasingly important to the growing middle classes in the early 20^th century, and those values inspired an attention to sizeable gardens that continues even in today’s modern developments. As for the architectural fabric, it is ripe for renewal and expansion. The current trend toward “don’t move, improve” means families are staying in this prime Hertfordshire location and expanding their houses considerably. In 20^th-century Harpenden homes, regulations are more permissive than in Central London.

Harpenden architects will be well versed in the planning restrictions for historic properties and steer you toward a compassionate renovation or extension. Barring the availability of such listed properties, Hertfordshire has its fair share of well-designed mid-century developments, which are finally receiving some of the critical praise they are due for their practical layouts and vast banks of glazing. Though many of these properties will have architectural restrictions, structural changes could be less complicated. In the hands of Harpenden architects, a typical post war house will transform into a unique contemporary haven.