Roman pool house.

Set within the grounds of a Grade 1 listed house, this pool house is located in an area rich with Roman history and local craftsmanship. Our clients requested an outdoor pool and pool house that would serve as a space for relaxing and entertaining throughout the year, as well as for more prosaic needs like a discreet plant room and pool furniture storage.

In addition to its Roman heritage, the site is part of a Scheduled Ancient Monument, located within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and subject to a National Trust covenant. It therefore required a sensitive, considered approach.

With remnants of a Roman villa and pavements beneath the site, the design references the form of a classical temple. Timber was chosen over stone to suit its role and setting as a garden building, emphasising the craftsmanship and honest expression of materials which is typical of the Gloucestershire Arts & Crafts tradition whilst softening the formal nature of traditional classical buildings.

Careful consideration was given to the relationship between the pool house, adjacent pond, gardens and the main house. A garden gate acts as a portal from the formal garden at the front of the house, and guides an approach to the pool through the trees. This aims to provide a gentle transition between formal and informal senses of place while preserving the house’s fundamental character.

The finely wrought oak frame celebrates the skills of local carpenter Tim Potts, as well as the broader Gloucestershire tradition of oak craftsmanship. It allowed us to create a structure that is bold but simple, elegant and fitting to its setting.

Adopting the straightforward post-and-beam construction typical of Roman temples, there is a certain classical formality to the design.

Embellishment comes through the expression of the roof’s principal rafters; with the exposed truss ends that crown the pilasters evoking the capitals and triglyphs of a temple.

Careful attention was given to the proportion of the side bays relative to the semicircular pediment window, itself a restrained nod to the classical motif of a triumphal arch.

In collaboration with our clients, we designed wind-down windows to allow for an unobstructed connection between the interior and exterior spaces. This meant we didn’t have to rely on sliding doors that would disrupt the character and visual balance of the scheme.

The windows were custom-engineered by de Havilland Engineering, using a beautiful mechanism that is both ingenious and straightforward.

With a view to greater harmony with its surroundings, we moved away from the rigid rectilinearity typical of contemporary pools.

Functional considerations, such as how it could reliably be covered, guided us—working in collaboration with local pool builders Rio Pools—to a form that follows the natural contour of the hill and is in dialogue with the adjacent pond, with an infinity edge that tempts bathers’ connection with the natural water.

Placed discreetly in the landscape and approached through the trees, the pool house offers a welcoming, relaxing informal space for entertaining throughout the year.

Our design aimed for a respectful and sensitive reference to the site’s heritage without resorting to imitation or pastiche, providing a building that is both architecturally engaging and appropriate to its setting.

Its construction brought together considerable local expertise—from craftspeople to engineers and builders, whilst the timber frame and ground source heating helped us reduce its wider environmental impact.