We built the only modern house on the village green
It's the home of Ben Minifie, an architect, and his wife, Gemma, a nurse, and their children, Rupert, 14, Mae, 12, and Meg, 8. It's also the only modern house on the village green. Walking through it on a hot June afternoon, with its white minimalist aesthetic and vast sliding doors that literally bring the outside in — a bird wanders into the living room at one point — I feel as if I'm in a California Case Study house, rather than one in a quaint English village.
It may not be typical, but the Minifies' story provides a lesson in how to get planning permission in a historic setting. A golden rule: don't expand the footprint. With judicious rejigging of the floor plan, Ben turned a house with three bedrooms and one bathroom into one with five bedrooms and two bathrooms. The key was making the 3,000 sq ft floor plan more efficient without adding any square footage.
Before: the old chalet bungalow had a steep pitched roof and cramped dormers
After: Ben opted for a flat roof to make the best use of space
AGNESE SANVITO
It's a far cry from their old house, a period semi in Tunbridge Wells. After Gemma had their third child in 2017, they were looking to upsize. The couple frequently went for walks in Frant and fantasised about living there, but houses were out of their price range and rarely came up for sale.
One day they stumbled across an anomaly: a 1970s chalet bungalow that backed on to the village green that was up for sale. The architect in Ben liked the idea of a project, so they bought the three-bedroom fixer-upper for £690,000 with dreams of transforming it, but knew they were taking a gamble. The house was in a conservation area and in the High Weald National Landscape, with a moratorium on new-builds in the village. They would have to turn a white elephant with no insulation and a failing roof into something fit for the 21st century — without frightening the horses.
However, they were smart. Before they had bought the house, they sought pre-planning advice. They asked for guidance from the planning officer, conservation officer and parish council, and took on board their feedback on everything from render colour to the shade of window frame. Even after they bought, Ben invited parish councillors around regularly. 'We got their opinion on plans. We wanted their early involvement. It's good to do any tweaks ahead of going for planning permission,' he says.
There had been some new-build development in the village but it was mostly historical pastiche. Ben researched local vernacular and chose his materials accordingly. The handmade Petersen hanging tiles from Denmark evoke Arts and Crafts; the black larch cladding on the façade was a nod to nearby Tudor houses. It also helped that the existing property was built in the 1970s, not an architectural style that's treasured by planning officers. 'Our design was seen as an enhancement,' Ben says.
After: the double garage was turned into a single with a new front entrance
AKIRA SUEMORI FOR THE TIMES
Equally important was getting the neighbours on board. 'Early communication is good and checking through the proposals to see if they've got any concerns,' Ben says.
To help to win over their next-door neighbour they removed windows that overlooked them and created new angled ones that gave them privacy. To bring more light into their garden and house, they approached neighbours on both sides and offered to trim the towering hedges to half their height and maintain them, even though the trees are not actually on Ben and Gemma's property.
When it came time to gain planning permission, it sailed through in eight weeks. No nimbys, no objections.
The fact that they were not extending worked in their favour. 'The original rooms were really big,' Ben says. 'Almost too big. We saw an opportunity to reconfigure the floor plan in a clever way.'
So instead of several big, separate rooms, they created a mixture: one open-plan one and a few smaller nooks. 'The original house was built in an almost American model, where the car was quite important,' Ben says. 'The garage was the main thing at the front of the house, and you'd walk down the side of the house to get to the entrance.'
Ben turned its double garage into a single, and used the remaining space to create a front entrance, with a hall, boot room, coat storage and bench. The old side entrance was closed off and its former hall is now a study.
After: the Scandi-influenced kitchen has a resin floor that looks like polished concrete
AGNESE SANVITO
On the old floor plan, there was a galley kitchen, dining room, living room and a playroom/downstairs bedroom. None had big windows and they felt cut off from the garden. Ben ditched the galley kitchen and created the front hall, putting the new kitchen where the playroom was at the back of the house. The kitchen, dining room and living room are linked to create one U-shaped open-plan space around a patio.
There are vast sliding doors at right angles to each other, separating the open-plan space from outside. When both doors open, the house merges with the patio. As I was chatting to Ben and Gemma, a robin flew in and began hopping around on the living room floor. Another sliding door on the other side of the living room opens on to a side garden — and allowed an exit for the wandering robin.
Losing a garage, or a portion of it, is a great way to gain space, especially because they're rarely used for cars any more. Losing the old playroom/bedroom and a downstairs bathroom also helped. By reconfiguring things, they've gained a utility room, a snug for TV-watching and a much bigger kitchen; the only room that stayed in the same place was the WC.
They also repositioned the staircase, which allowed them to change the upstairs layout, swapping a large wide landing with three bedrooms for a long thin hallway surrounded by five bedrooms and two bathrooms (one en suite). 'The bedrooms in the old house were vast but inefficient,' Ben says.
In the chalet bungalow the old bedrooms had sloped ceilings and dormers. To gain more usable space, Ben swapped the pitched roof for a flat one — giving the bedrooms straight walls — and made the ceilings feel higher by leaving the beams exposed. Ben believes big bedrooms are pointless when all you need is a decent-sized bed and some storage.
Flat-roof technology has moved on from the bad old leaky days: this one has a rubber membrane and tapered angle so water drains into invisible rain pipes.
The house has been replumbed, rewired and re-insulated with rockwool, and given new Velfac windows. Three rooflights have been added, as well as a double-storey window in the hallway.
The ground floor has a resin floor that looks like polished concrete, but is more durable and not as thick (22mm, including underfloor heating, versus 100mm), which makes the ceilings feel higher.
After: flat-roof technology has moved on from the bad old leaky days
AGNESE SANVITO
The flat roof meant they lost eaves storage, but they have crammed new storage under the stairs and hidden in walls behind push-click doors. The remaining garage is also used for storage.
They saved money by rebuilding the first floor using timber-frame construction, rather than blockwork. For the Scandi-influenced kitchen, instead of buying a designer brand like DeVol, they bought carcasses from a trade supplier and got the joiner James Christopher to make the oak cupboards, dining table and bench. Ben reckons they saved £15,000 doing it this way.
The living room
AGNESE SANVITO
Sliding doors separate the open-plan space from outside
AGNESE SANVITO
The budget came to £550,000. Even though they haven't added any square footage, Ben had the house valued and says they've come out slightly ahead financially.
'We didn't do this to make money,' Gemma says. 'It was to live somewhere that we really wanted to live and get a comfortable house. And we didn't want to extend because the garden's not huge and we didn't want to lose it. But we're hugely lucky because we go out of the gate and we're straight on to the village green.'
The secret to their success was blending in rather than standing out. 'We wanted it to complement this gorgeous place and actually be a cool addition rather than just plonk something contemporary on the village green,' Gemma says. 'I'm trying to think of other pretty, historic villages where there's a contemporary house right in the middle. I don't think there are that many. I feel pretty lucky that we've been able to do it.'
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Daily Mail
23 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Five delicious Italian recipes straight from Nonna's cookbook
LUISA Born 1943, San Giuseppe Vesuviano, Italy 'I can't tell you exactly how many years I've been cooking this dish – probably around 60. The key to a good spaghetti alle vongole is to add a lot of oil, and the cooking water from the pasta, to make sure it doesn't go dry. We're just adding the tomatoes for colour and flavour, rather than to make a sauce, but we still want a silky finish at the end. Naples is famous for its vongole and we eat a lot of seafood here in the city. We Napolitani are completely mad about food. It is always on our minds – and usually the topic of conversation. Sunday lunch with family is a ritual we stick to religiously. It is an excuse to come together, share laughter and a great many dishes. A Neapolitan lunch doesn't just last one hour – sometimes it can go on until dinnertime and we will eat and eat and eat and talk about eating while we eat.' LUISA'S SPAGHETTI ALLA VONGOLE (Neapolitan Clam Pasta) This takes very little time to make and is an impressive dish to serve up once you master it. SERVES 4 400g cherry tomatoes 1 heaped tbsp sea salt, plus extra to taste 350g spaghetti 60ml olive oil 4 garlic cloves, halved and green germs removed ½ bunch of parsley, stems and leaves separated, and leaves finely chopped 2 small dried chillies 850g vongole (clams), washed 1 First, cut a cross in the top of each tomato, then set aside. 2 Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil, add the salt then the spaghetti. Set a timer for 2 minutes before the suggested time on the packet – the pasta will finish cooking with the clams. 3 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a deep frying pan over a low heat and fry the garlic, parsley stems and chillies for 5 minutes, then remove the garlic, parsley and chillies from the pan using a slotted spoon and discard. Add the tomatoes to the pan, bringing the heat to medium, and cover. Let the tomatoes steam in their juices for about 4 minutes, then add the clams, cover again and cook for a minute or so. Add a scant ladle of pasta water to the pan and cook until the clams are open – discard any that aren't. Use a slotted spoon to remove some of the clams and set aside. 4 Drain the pasta, add it to the pan, stirring until the sauce thickens. Divide between dinner plates and add the reserved clams, plus a sprinkling of parsley leaves. Serve immediately. NINETTE Born 1935, Mallorca, Spain 'My mother taught me how to make this dish and it's one that I have reverted to again and again because I find it incredibly adaptable. You can eat the cod warm and serve for a family dinner or it can be eaten the next day with a salad. This way it serves as a good dish throughout the year, as long as you can find the fish and a good-quality one at that. Another important element of the dish is the vinegar. I use a vinegar that is Chardonnay and very high quality from France, but any good-quality white-wine vinegar will work here. My cooking has an element of finesse because for my most formative years I lived in France and loved all things French. The food, the culture, all of it was my own for many years before we moved back to Mallorca. My family owned and ran a bar while we lived in France, so I was raised with an element of 'Frenchness' that I suppose I have never really shaken.' NINETTE'S BACALAO ESCABECHE AL FINO (Spanish Cod Escabeche) This is a showstopper that tastes slightly pickled, and is surprisingly quick and easy to conjure up. SERVES 6 1kg cod fillet, cut into thick chunks salt and freshly ground black pepper 125g plain flour 400ml olive oil 3 large red onions, sliced into long, thin strips 2 bay leaves 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 200g chopped tomatoes (use tinned if it's not the season for fresh) 60ml tarragon vinegar 1 Sprinkle the cod with salt, then spread out the flour on a plate and dip the cod fillets into it until lightly coated. 2 Heat the oil in a wide frying pan over a high heat and fry the cod fillets for about 5 minutes, taking care not to turn the fish or poke it too many times as it will fall apart. After 5 minutes, flip the fillets and cook for 5 more minutes until golden all over. Gently remove the cod from the pan and put on a plate covered with paper towels. 3 Next, add the onions to the same pan with the leftover oil over a medium heat. Add the bay leaves, ½ tablespoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper, then gently simmer for about 30 minutes until very soft. 4 Meanwhile, combine the garlic and tomatoes in a bowl. When the onions are ready, add the tomato and garlic blend to the onions and cook for a minute or so until the mixture has infused with the onions, then follow up with the vinegar. Cook for a further 5 minutes, then remove from the heat. 5 Put the cod on a serving platter, top with the onion mixture and serve. SOULA Born 1946, Peloponnese, Greece 'Lots of people aren't aware that spanakorizo is an interesting combination not only because it tastes good. Spinach is difficult for the human body to digest, but the rice and lemon that we add to it helps the body to absorb the iron. My mother was an excellent cook, and she told me this many years ago. I lived in America for most of my adult life but have returned to Greece for the weather and the good produce. I like to go to my local laiki (market) every Thursday – it's an outing that happens ritually every week. I also tend to go for walks in the surrounding olive groves every day, leaving my brother, whom I live with, to sleep in while I get out and about to catch up with friends or start on the day's chores. I find that what is most important in life is to keep moving. Even when things get tough, we must put one foot in front of the other and keep walking.' SOULA'S SPANAKORIZO (Greek Rice and Spinach Risotto) This dish is a kind of risotto, but in true Greek style the vegetables are the stars and it's much less fussy to make than a traditional Italian version – who has time for all that hovering and stirring? SERVES 4 1 kg fresh spinach (Soula insists it is always fresh – never frozen) 160ml olive oil, plus extra to serve 4 large spring onions, trimmed and chopped into 1cm rounds 2 large leeks, trimmed and cleaned, then chopped into 2.5cm half moons 1 bunch of dill, roughly chopped 2 large garlic cloves (green germs removed), roughly chopped 700ml water 150g medium-grain rice, such as arborio ½ tbsp salt ½ tsp ground black pepper 1 chicken stock cube, optional (reduce the salt by half if using) ½ lemon, for squeezing feta and bread, to serve 1 First wash the spinach. Add it to a large bowl of water with a splash of vinegar and wash well, roughly tearing it to pieces as you do so and removing any tough stalks. The vinegar will ensure you get rid of any little 'friends' hiding in the leaves. 2 Drain the spinach and put it in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Cover and leave to steam for 10 minutes. Next add the olive oil, followed by the spring onions, leeks, dill and garlic. Cook, stirring every so often, for about 5 minutes. 3 Pour in 700ml water and add the rice, salt, pepper and stock cube (if using). Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to stop the rice sticking. 4 Once the rice is tender, season again to taste, adding a squeeze of lemon for a final zingy flourish. Serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil, a slab of feta and plenty of crusty bread. LATIFA Born 1945, Tunis, Tunisia 'I've been eating lablebi since I was a little girl. It's our 'fast food' here in Tunis – the thing young people eat at five o'clock in the morning after a night out in the city. In some regions of Tunisia they serve it inside a baguette, like a sandwich. It soaks up the alcohol after a heavy night. Of course, I wouldn't know about this because when I was a young girl I was mainly kept indoors. I grew up in the Medina, but I rarely saw it because I wasn't allowed to play outside. We were seven children in total and my brothers were the only ones of us that were allowed to venture out. I didn't know any different and this was the norm, so I never questioned it.' LATIFA'S LABLEBI (Tunisian Chickpea Soup) Lablebi is a staple of Tunisian cuisine, although its origins can also be linked to the Ottoman occupation of Tunis in the 1600s, when chickpeas were served to Ottoman soldiers as a thrifty and filling meal. It's hot, hearty and the perfect go-to recipe if you ever feel a cold coming on. This recipe is for those well versed in spice. If you want a mellower lablebi, halve or even quarter the harissa quantity and then add more at the end if you need it, along with the other toppings. 500g dried chickpeas 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda 70ml olive oil ½ bulb of garlic, cloves thinly sliced ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp ground turmeric 1 tbsp harissa, plus extra to serve ½ tbsp sea salt 4-6 slices of days-old bread TO SERVE capers poached or boiled eggs good-quality tinned tuna 1 The day before you want to make the lablebi, put the chickpeas in a large bowl, add half the bicarbonate of soda, cover with water and leave to soak overnight. 2 The next day, drain the chickpeas, then add to a large saucepan with 2 litres of water. Put over a high heat and start to bring to the boil as you add the remaining bicarbonate of soda followed by the oil, garlic, pepper, cumin, turmeric and harissa. Cover almost completely (leaving a space uncovered for the steam to escape) and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a steady simmer and cook for 20 minutes. 3 After the time is up, add the salt, then simmer for a further 20 minutes. Check to see if the chickpeas have softened by taking a few out and pressing on them with a fork or, even better, tasting them. 4 When you're ready to serve, break up the bread into the bottom of your bowls and spoon over the lablebi (you can choose to have it dense like a stew or loose like a ramen), then finish with the other toppings as you like. MARYSE Born 1940, Uzès, France 'Like most foods of the peasant people, this courgette gratin was simply born out of an abundance of its key ingredient: courgettes. My parents were farmers from the Camargue. They grew their own vegetables, and we would have so many courgettes in the summer months that my mother practically raised us on this gratin. Some people don't use garlic in this béchamel, or else they use it to flavour it slightly and then take it out. Being from the south, I keep the garlic in. I've been cooking for 63 years. When I was a young girl we would be taught by our mothers how to get by in the kitchen in order to be able to satisfy our future husbands. What I've learnt in these six decades in the kitchen is that delicious food really needs a certain dedication of time. It's difficult for young people now to make something truly satisfying because everything's always done in such a rush. The truth is, time is necessary for food to be good; it's an essential pause in the day to treat oneself.' MARYSE'S COURGETTE GRATIN FROM THE CAMARGUE, SOUTHERN FRANCE This recipe can be found all over the south of France. While it's baked in a béchamel sauce along with added butter and cheese (the latter helps the dish achieve the all-important golden crust that is essential to a gratin), this courgette bake is light, and it pairs perfectly with a meatier main – or perhaps even just a green salad on a summer's day. SERVES 4 as a main, 6 as a side 800g courgettes, sliced into 5mm rounds 40g Emmental, finely grated For the béchamel 4 tbsp plain flour 390ml whole milk, plus another 6 tbsp 1 tbsp sunflower oil 2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1½ tsp flaky sea salt 4 tbsp double cream 10g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing freshly ground white or black pepper 1 Preheat the oven to 200C/ 180C fan/gas 6 and grease a casserole dish (alternatively a roughly 25cm x 32cm baking dish or baking tray) generously with butter. 2 Prepare a steamer (or steamer basket over a saucepan of hot water) and steam the courgette slices for 6 minutes. 3 Meanwhile, start preparing the béchamel. Combine the flour with 90ml of the milk in a small bowl. Whisk until smooth. 4 When the courgettes have steamed (they should be slightly softened at this stage but still possess a bit of bite), drain them in a colander and leave to dry. 5 Heat the sunflower oil in the same saucepan over a low to medium heat and fry the garlic, taking care to stop before it begins to brown. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool for a minute, then add the remaining milk to the pan, along with the salt and a grind of white or black pepper. Return to a low to medium heat. Now add the flour-and-milk mixture and stir like crazy with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes until you have a smooth and viscous béchamel sauce. You don't want it to be very thick – rather a pourable consistency, like cream. Remove from the heat and add the cream and butter, stirring until combined. 6 Put the courgettes in your chosen baking dish. You don't need to arrange them delicately in layers (although you can if you want to go for a 'fancy' look). Maryse just tips them in and shakes the dish to disperse the courgettes evenly. Pour the béchamel sauce over the courgettes and sprinkle over the cheese and 6 tbsp milk. Bake in the oven on the top shelf for 25 minutes, or until the gratin is bubbling and golden. MARGARITA Born 1932, Mallorca, Spain 'I've reached my nineties, but I don't particularly feel very old. Thankfully, I can still get around and take care of myself as well as the children and grandchildren. I have a life of hard work to thank for that. I was born into a family that wasn't hugely wealthy and so, like many children at the time, I was sent to the estate of a rich French family here in Mallorca. That way, my parents could ensure I would be well taken care of, but it also meant that I couldn't go to school. I was nine years old when I left to work on the estate and I was terrified to leave my mother, but I have to say that, in the end, they took very good care of me and treated me as their own daughter. I learned a lot there about the land and about cooking, which I have loved ever since. It was in that first job that I learned to make coca de verduras. I've been making it for over 80 years now, so we can say I've become an expert. The key to this recipe and my ultimate tip is to use a hardy iron tray to make it and to cook it on the lowest level of the oven with the top and bottom setting on. You want the vegetables to caramelise and the dough to cook at the same time. No one wants a soggy dough. You want it to come out crispy like a tart.' MARGARITA'S COCA DE VERDURAS (Mallorcan Vegetable Tart) Every Mallorcan is familiar with coca de verduras, a crisp, thin-based tart weighed heavy with plenty of vegetables. The coca is described as a flatbread or pizza as it isn't yeasted at all. It's best enjoyed with a beer and a couple of other small plates and would make a great addition to a picnic, packed lunch or garden party spread. SERVES 12 SLICES 1 butterhead lettuce (about 150g), trimmed and finely chopped 2 tsp flaky sea salt 2 small leeks, finely chopped 6 spring onions, finely chopped 1 small bunch of parsley, leaves finely chopped 1 tsp ground black pepper 1 tsp smoked paprika 1 garlic clove, crushed or grated 150ml olive oil 2 small tomatoes, thinly sliced handful For the pastry ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 100ml cold water 100ml olive oil 50g lard or unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small cubes 300g plain flour, plus extra as needed 1 Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 and line a roughly 38cm x 25cm baking tray, preferably cast iron, with baking parchment. 2 Put the chopped lettuce into a large bowl, add 1 teaspoon of the salt and massage it into the lettuce to break it down a little. Add the leeks, spring onions and parsley to the bowl with the remaining teaspoon of salt, the pepper, paprika, garlic and olive oil. Stir to combine. 3 Next, make the pastry. In a separate bowl, combine the bicarbonate of soda with the water, olive oil and your choice of fat. Stir to combine and break down the cubes of fat a little. 4 Add the flour bit by bit, combining with your hands and rubbing the cubes of fat into the flour to break them up. Do this until it comes together into a soft, pliable ball that doesn't feel sticky. Add more flour or water a teaspoon at a time if the dough is too wet or dry. You are going to press this into the tray rather than roll it, so you don't want it to be too stiff. 5 Place the dough in the centre of the prepared tray and pat it down to flatten it. Begin to spread it out across the entire base of the tray with your hands, pressing in with your fingers and pushing the pastry outwards until it reaches the edges in a thin, even layer. Prick it all over with a fork, then bake on the bottom of the oven (not on a shelf) for 5 minutes. Placing it on the bottom of the oven will help the base crisp up. 6 After 5 minutes, when the base is a little more firm, remove the tray from the oven and cover the pastry evenly with the greens, then spread the slices of tomato on top. Return to the bottom of the oven and bake for 10 minutes, then move to the top of the oven for a final 5 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the topping is nicely cooked and slightly charred in places. Remove from the oven and top with the toasted pine nuts, then serve hot or cold. NOW BUY THE BOOK Our recipes are taken from Mediterranea by Anastasia Miari with photographs by Marco Argüello (Quadrille, £28). To order a copy for £23.80 until 17 August, go to or call 020 3176 2937. Free UK delivery on orders over £25.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Red squirrels back in Herefordshire after farm opens new enclosure
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BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Cirencester's rare pieces of Roman military equipment go on display
Two rare Roman swords unearthed by a metal detectorist are set to go on display to the public. The artefacts, which were found in the north Cotswolds in 2023, are now on show at the Corinium Museum in being discovered by amateur metal detectorist Glenn Manning, the swords were X-rayed using funding from Historic England, which revealed they were created nearly two millennia ago. Emma Stuart, director of the Museum, said: "I'd like to thank all of our funders and conservators for ensuring the swords are preserved and displayed for our visitors and for future generations to enjoy." "The team are all excited to see the new display and welcome people into the museum to see these rare pieces of Roman military equipment that are now part of our archaeological collections," she added. The swords will be displayed in two specially-designed glass cases alongside a copper alloy bowl which was discovered during the same Hughes, chair of Friends of Corinium Museum, said he was "confident" the swords and the bowl would be a "major attraction" for visitors to the museum. Upon examination the swords were believed to be cavalry weapons or weapons intended to be used on horseback, and were likely to be in use by the 160s, through the later Second Century and far into the Third Century Paul Hodgkinson, who oversees health, culture and visitor experience at Cotswold District Council said: "These swords connect us directly to our Roman past and remind us of the rich history beneath our feet here in the Cotswolds. "The Corinium Museum continues to lead the way in bringing our heritage to life, and this display is a testament to the dedication of everyone involved."
