Paul & Nicky Maguire from Wigston Parva approached The Design Social with a fascinating idea to convert an existing garage with a loft conversion into a short term, AirBNB style holiday let. The difficulty was that the property borders a designated heritage area, which meant that heritage reports & Highways Agency liaising were required.

When we were first approached, the original brief was to open 2 lets in order to maximise the space, However after an in-depth survey and 3D modelling process we proposed that 1 let would be more appropriate. We then reached out to the Highways Agency and they too stated that 1 would be better, as the increase in traffic could become more problematic for the small village they lived in, Wigston Parva, if there were 2 groups of guests visiting at once.

We then had to think of and revise some of the materials needed for the conversion, as it was near to a heritage area so some materials had to be restricted. However, we liaised with the local conservation council and materials that were more appropriate were selected, allowing the project to go through smoothly.

The final problem we faced was that some of our clients neighbours objected to the planning application, however after working with the planning department, our application was approved by the council as it adhered to planning policy.