Surrey Homes | SH33 | July 2017 | Interiors supplement inside

Above: The entrance hall windows look out onto a beautiful old brick wall which is illuminated at night
living area is ideal for entertaining. “It’s magical with
candles in the evening and with the fire,” adds Marta.
The rest of the plan flowed from the hall house idea,
with hints at the building’s previous incarnations as both
coach house to the adjacent Georgian property and, more
recently, the St John Ambulance station. Marta wanted to
use the original ambulance station doors, but they didn’t
meet building regulations, so are used on an internal wall
instead as decoration and to reference the historical use.
They mirror the new functional doors that have been made
in the same style. There are other nods to the building’s
recent history with medical and industrial inspired pieces,
such as the nurse’s trolley in the upstairs bathroom and a
sleek brushed stainless steel island unit in the kitchen.
The property has had several lives then, transitioning
from coach house to ambulance station to stunning
contemporary home. Marta explains, “The original coach
house building was demolished in the war and rebuilt
to the same design, being made into an ambulance
station to help with the war effort. Then St John
Ambulance took it over, housing two ambulances and
making a warren of rooms, some for training and for
use as public spaces, others for admin and office space.”
Marta knocked down the 1970s addition at the back
87 wealdentimes.co.uk