Pont House is a detached new-build in Darras Hall, by Ponteland village on the outskirts of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK. It replaces the original detached house built by a house developer in the early 1980s. The rural private Darras Hall estate, historically known as “Garden City of the North”, is surrounded by open countryside, farm lands and woodlands. Most of the houses in the estate are of 1980s executive home styles.
The brief was to create a family home that would welcome contemporary open-plan living, at the same time merging the incredible rural outdoor and countryside with the interiors in the formal composition, to achieve a way of life that the owners of Pont House had long yearned for but were never able to obtain from their old house.
A small stream runs across the rear garden of Pont House and joins the river Pont. Deer dwell in the wood beyond. External views are strategically framed to take into the setting, and together with large glazed openings and high-level rooflights natural daylight floods the interiors of Pont House to create a sense of volume and place.
Sustainability was very much part of the brief. Though generously glazed for spectacular views and to minimise the use of artificial lighting, Pont House is well insulated to reduce heat loss. Solar photovoltaics with energy storage minimise reliance on grid supply. Natural ventilation via stack effects through the central triple height space prevents solar gain, and an ASHP space cooling/heating system supplements the boiler-powered UFH system. Future retrofitting allows the boiler to be replaced with a main ASHP. A central lift future-proofs mobility for the owners.

Pont House has been designed as a sustainable home with the following decisions to reduce its carbon footprint:
-Appoint predominantly local companies and tradespersons.
-Local demolition subcontractor specialises in recycling and reusing of materials.
-Retain and incorporate the concrete raft foundation of the original house into the new foundation.
-Use a hybrid superstructure of steel frame and masonry walls instead of a full steel frame structure.
-Use Posi joists instead of traditional timber floor joists to reduce build time and labour costs, avoid suspended ceiling for services.
-Achieve low U-values for external walls, floors and roofs with generous insulation.
-Enable natural cross-ventilation and reduce solar gain by use of the stack effect in the triple height hallway.
-Strategically position large glazed areas not only for stunning views to the outside but also to reduce the need for artificial lighting.
-Include an ASHP powered air cooling /heating system to supplement the primary gas boiler UFH system.
-Include Solar photovoltaics with battery storage to reduce reliance on grid energy.
– A disabled lift to future-proof mobility for the clients