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Journal

Arches House: what happens when you start with the right question

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 7, 2026

Two-storey brick side and rear extension in West Hampstead with arched steel-framed windows opening onto a landscaped garden terrace, designed by RISE Design Studio for contemporary family living.

Project completed 2023. Two-storey side and rear extension with full internal reconfiguration of a Victorian semi-detached house.

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Topics: Residential architecture hampstead

Notting Hill EnerPHit Retrofit - Reimagining Victorian Homes for a Low-Carbon Future

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 4, 2026

The full rear composition - a social firepit terrace anchors the outdoor space, with the glazed extension drawing the interior and garden into a single continuous environment in Notting Hill

London's Victorian housing stock is extraordinary. Generous proportions. Handmade brick. A civic confidence baked into every facade.

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Topics: enerphit Notting Hill Architects

A Padel Court in a Notting Hill Garden Square

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 3, 2026

Padel court concept by RISE Design Studio in a Notting Hill garden square, with a green court and net, pale mesh walls in a timber frame, a pitched roof of exposed glulam trusses, and a glazed gable wall framing a pink cherry tree, lawn, and white stucco terraces beyond.

Notting Hill keeps its best spaces out of sight. Behind the long terraces of white stucco, screened by railings and a locked gate, sit the communal gardens of the Ladbroke Estate. They were laid out in the middle of the nineteenth century as shared private greens, lawns and mature tre …

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Topics: London Architecture Biophilic Design Timber Structures Padel Court Sustainable Padel Court West London Architect Notting Hill Architects Sports Architecture Pavilion Architecture Padel court design

AI and the Planning System: What Does It Mean for Your Home?

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 3, 2026

Exterior view of a London home extension with sliding glazed doors, exposed concrete and timber, warm evening light, architectural drawings in the foreground on a garden table.

You may have seen the headlines. The government is introducing AI into the UK planning system. If you are thinking about a home extension, renovation, or retrofit, it is a reasonable thing to wonder about. Here is an honest view of what is changing, what is not, and what it means for …

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Topics: Retrofit Planning permission home extension Sustainable Design AI and Architecture RISE Insight London Architect

What If Nature Is the Architect?

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 2, 2026

Close-up black and white photograph of a mollusc shell showing intricate surface corrugation and spiral geometry, the structural principles behind Tonkin Liu's Shell Lace architecture technique.

Anna Liu and Tonkin Liu on designing with living systems, not against them By RISE Design Studio There is a question that sits quietly at the centre of serious architectural practice: what does a building owe to the world beyond its walls? Anna Liu ARB RIBA FRSA, co-founder and direct …

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Topics: Sustainable architecture Regenerative Architecture Architectural Research Architecture London Biomimicry Nature-Led Design

A Padel Court Behind the Terraces in Crouch End

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Feb 2, 2026

Padel court concept by RISE Design Studio on a Crouch End backland, with a green court and net, pale mesh walls in a timber frame, a barrel-vaulted roof of steel and glulam arches, and a full-height glazed gable wall framing a wild meadow and gabled red-brick terraces beyond.

Crouch End has always felt like a village that wandered into the city and decided to stay. No Underground station, which keeps it quiet. Long runs of red-brick Victorian terraces with gabled roofs and bay windows. The Parkland Walk threading green through the back of it all, an old ra …

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Topics: London Architecture Biophilic Design Timber Structures Padel Court Sustainable Padel Court Backland Development Sports Architecture North London Architects Padel court design Crouch End

Modular Construction & Net Zero: Why Whole-Life Carbon Thinking Is the Future of New Build Architecture

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Jan 23, 2026

Two-storey modular timber home beside a Sussex lake at dusk, warm larch cladding reflected in still water, biophilic landscaping, designed by RISE Design Studio architects London.

A Sector at a Crossroads There are moments in an industry when direction becomes destiny.

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Topics: Sustainable architecture modular architecture New Build House Whole Life Carbon Net Zero Architecture new build architect Sussex modular architect London

Architects in Notting Hill - understanding place before design

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Jan 21, 2026

Rear garden view of a sustainable home extension in Notting Hill, combining contemporary curved forms with historic brickwork, designed by architects experienced in conservation areas and low-energy residential design.

Notting Hill is a place where architecture carries memory. Terraces shaped by time, generous streets, and fragments of communal green space give the area its quiet confidence. It is not a neighbourhood that rewards excess. It rewards judgement.

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Topics: Sustainable Architect Notting Hill Architects

The Quiet Test Every Home Should Pass

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Jan 7, 2026

Low-energy residential extension designed by RISE Design Studio, glowing warmly in winter snow, demonstrating strong heat retention, airtight construction, and sustainable fabric-first design that reduces energy demand and improves comfort.

Winter has a way of revealing truths.

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Topics: Sustainable architecture low energy home Winter Performance

How Sustainable Architecture Is Redefining London Homes

by Sean Ronnie Hill on Jan 7, 2026

Sustainable low-energy home extension in London during winter, with snow outside and warm interior light visible through high-performance glazing, demonstrating fabric-first architecture and improved thermal comfort.

London woke up cold this week. Snow settled briefly on rooftops, pavements turned white, and inside many homes the familiar winter ritual began again – turning the heating up, blocking draughts, layering jumpers, and bracing for the next energy bill.

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Topics: Sustainable architecture low energy home Winter Performance
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