S54A were asked to design the upgrading of the ground floor of a large family house in Aberdeen Park in Islington. The existing kitchen was dark and badly planned with an inadequate dining area and no Utility room. The Living room was disconnected from the dining area and the cloakroom was small and badly located. All the main living areas face north and were elevated above a large garden, but took little advantage of the space or the views. As well as providing extra space, the proposed extension gave the opportunity to get more daylight into the back of the house: a wide picture window facing north, a west facing window, east facing sliding doors and a roof light. The extension also naturally encloses a new patio which has been built at the level of the ground floor of the house, paved in brick and stepped down into the garden.  The extended ground floor includes a new kitchen and a generous dining area overlooking both the garden and the new patio. A new entrance has been formed to improve the link into the dining area and an enlarged entrance from the Living Room onto the patio facing the garden. A new Study, Cloakroom and Utility Room at the front of the house complete the reorganisation of the ground floor plan. The extension has been designed as two linked volumes which step up from the entrance to the living room. The larger volume is brick and extends the kitchen. The smaller is clad in grey stained timber and sits below the landing window on the axis of the front door (with a tall window providing a long view through the house into the garden). This is a transition space between the courtyard and the dining room. The project was completed in the early summer of 2017