Project Orange was invited by the London Evening Standard for our response to the Government's call for '£60k homes'. We designed an Urban Cottage constructed from solid, structural timber panels and worked with contractor Eurban to provide a realistic proposition on budget.

Our starting point for this project was the terraced house, one of the most common forms of housing stock in London. It has the advantage of being efficient to build as each property shares walls with its neighbours. We designed a modern version of the terraced house constructed from timber. The walls for the house can be brought to site in one piece and pre-drilled ready for services to be fitted. The finish is timber and therefore there is no need to add further decorative surfaces. The front and back façade are glazed walls with double-glazing to ensure a very high level of insulation.

The layout is recognisable as a 'two up two down'. From the street the house is very open. A small balcony from the first floor forms a simple porch to the brightly painted front door. The front door opens into the living room from which passage leads through to the kitchen/dining past a downstairs cloakroom. The kitchen is a square room with cooking along the one wall and storage along the other. A dining table is oriented in front of the window and a door opens onto the back garden.

The stair winds up from the main living room to a small landing and the main bedroom. The bathroom is compact and fully top lit. At night you can lie in the bath and watch the stars. The second room is seen as a study/bedroom. We believe this is a viable solution to the problem of building economic housing that is urban, sophisticated and cosy.