ARCHITECT’S VIEW
Building with nature in mind
Wendy Perring, founder of Pad Studio, gives her take on designing a home that is sympathetic to the environment and encourages biodiversity
HEADSHOT: PAUL CLOSE
What does it mean to design a home that responds to the environment?
Regardless of whether you have a site that is deeply immersed in the countryside or an urban plot, every build should respond to both nature and the landscape. A house that is built with the environment in mind should achieve this not only aesthetically, but in the way it accommodates and welcomes wildlife onto the site, as well as using sustainable materials and construction techniques that have a wider positive impact on nature. This means contextual design, taking into account what is on and surrounding the land, and causing minimal disturbance to the existing biodiversity and impact on the environment when building.