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Suntings Farm is a large rural property in the heart of the Ashdown Forest. It sits in a 1.1 hectare site of rolling green countryside with a carp pond tributary of the River Medway. The oldest part of the house is reputed to be 500 years old and is built from the local sandstone. It was extended in 1974 and again in the 1990s.The current owners had a vision of moving the kitchen out of the corner of the property and into the heart of the house removing the 1990s addition and connecting the old house to a refurbished barn building. The new addition is built from Lambs Sussex Sandstone, quarried locally.
Camillin Denny have used a smooth finish stone for the outer skin of the house, which opens up to reveal an inner layer of stone which is tooled to give a vibrant texture. The inner skin of stone also opens up to reveal the glazed areas of the façade. A double height glazed link connects the old house to the new addition, this in turn contains a glass bridge which connects the family bedrooms on the upper level to the master suite, within which is a projecting zinc window seat which looks out from the master bedroom across to the westerly views, and a roof terrace from the master suite looking out over the carp pond.
The rooms are fitted with hand crafted joinery creating a sequence of spaces: The snug leads to the library, which leads to the glass link, which leads to the kitchen and family room which in turn leads to the barn. The barn has been re-clad in sweet chestnut timber boards. The project won the Sussex Heritage Trust Small Residential Award in 2009.