As a single mother with a full time job, I chose to engage Hampton Architecture for the full service in renovating and extending my home, in order to save me time and give me peace of mind.  I had critical times to move to and it was important that the project to complete on time, oversight by Marcus helped achieve that goal and save me interim rental costs.

Marcus’s service was excellent, the benefits including:-

• Offering excellent advice and options about the design such that I am completely happy with the outcome and wouldn’t change any element of the design

• Clearly setting out expectations for the process (timelines, planning permission processes, potential utility company issues as well as the build costs and timelines).

• Opening his contact book for tried and tested recommendations for builders and key contractors - very valuable to me as someone newly moved into to the area

• Being on hand at all times to answer queries as they arose in a timely way throughout the design and build. This was particularly helpful as some of the many queries I was expected to answer from the builder were technical in nature and I lacked the knowledge to fully understand the implications of my decisions.

• Peace of mind through independent assurance of invoices such that I never worried when paying the builder

• Creating excellent relationships and strong communications both with myself and with the builder such that he could proactively smooth over any potential issues before they became a problem for either party. 

As a single female, who had never taken on a renovation project of the scale I wanted, finding an architect who could interpret my vision proved very difficult. The architects I spoke to seemed formulaic in their approach and seemed to lack the creativity to think outside of the box. 

I was looking for a very unique build (at the time) and on meeting with you, you understood exactly what I was looking for and was able to interpret the vision in my head exactly. Not only was this a major relief, as I was starting to believe what I wanted couldn’t be achieved but you added so much extra to my vision. The initial drawings were amazing and I could feel not only my own excitement building, but that of you and Sally. 

At this time in my life I was running two businesses, one here and one in the USA and free time for me was very limited and this was another worry for me, as I would not be able to be ‘hands on’ with this project. No problem! You discussed the full managed service with me that Hampton Architecture offered, this was definitely the package I needed and I knew I could from the rapport that we had built, I could trust you in managing this. 

Hampton Architecture dealt with everything, drawing up the plans, detailing the specification and scope of the project. Gaining planning consent, with what was a tough council at the time and a few objections, putting the contract out to tender to reputable construction firms, final negotiations and awarding the final contract. The added value that Hampton provided throughout the build was to prove to be invaluable. With me working overseas a lot, you kept me informed, you were able to foresee and manage potential issues and even when I would throw a curve ball at you and ‘change’ my mind, it was all managed seamlessly from my perspective. 

You ran a very tight ship and ensured the contractors kept the site tidy, you reconciled their invoices before authorising me to make payment, and resolved any issues throughout the project, which on one of this size, we had a few. You also managed me, ensuring that any decisions I needed to make were done in time to prevent any slippage. You followed everything through with the most intricate of detail including the snagging! 

Your wealth of experience has proven to be an invaluable asset to my end build, its beautiful, exactly what I envisaged and has stood the test of time. And your commitment to enabling this was nothing short of amazing. I would highly recommend Hampton Architecture to any potential clients and if they would like to view your work, they can come and have a cup of tea and a chat.

Hampton Architecture were engaged to design and arrange and supervise the building of a new house on the back garden of an existing property. It was to the new house that I planned to move after retirement and that move has now taken place. As I had no experience of undertaking such a design and building project, it was important to me to engage a company who would undertake management of the entire process.

In consultation with my sister and me, Hampton Architecture draw up some initial outline plans and these were subsequently refined for the final design. They arranged for the necessary surveys of the site to be undertaken and submitted these and the plans to the local council to obtain planning permission and this was granted in due course.

Hampton Architecture then obtained tenders from a small number of contractors and one of these was selected and the building work commenced. Throughout the building process, they undertook contract management which included ensuring that everything was in order on site and authorising payments to the contractors. As far as I was concerned, everything went smoothly. No doubt, this was because potential problems were foreseen and appropriate steps taken. The latter stages involved liaison with other contractors for such things as fitting the kitchen and bathrooms, and an alarm system.

Upon completion Hampton Architecture carried a final “snagging” survey three months later to identify minor building faults and to arrange to have these corrected.

Throughout, Hampton Architecture have behaved in a friendly, courteous and professional way. They made sure that the entire process from the initial designs to the final completed building ran smoothly and successfully. As a result, I am more than happy to recommend them and the services they offer.

We have used Hampton Architecture services on 3 occasions now. A kitchen extension, a new commercial building, and a new house build. Both the house build and kitchen extension HA provided us with the full service from reading our minds, to designing, planning and then contract managing to completion.

 The house build was very much out of our comfort zone and a huge investment. We probably would not have taken on this project had it not been for the past experiences we have had with Marcus and Sally. We are pleased to say that this build and the kitchen extension were both finished to budget. A comment that has stuck in my mind from the builders is that this is the first project they had worked on where everything on the plans was black and white with no grey areas.

The best value to us as clients throughout the whole build process was the services of Hampton Architecture, from concept to finish, their eye for detail is faultless. They kept any extra costs to a minimum from the contractor. And also provided a wealth of knowledge in changes and additions that happened along the way we wanted. Their Friendly nature and calm attitude made the whole process a pleasure.

"I was under the impression that it was stressful putting plans through for approval, but the fact that you did everything and kept us fully informed all the time made it so easy. Your expertise also made it possible to get approval for some alterations, that without your full depth of knowledge and close links with the council, I know we would have struggled to get passed"

"I found Hampton Architecture extremely helpful and friendly to deal with from the initial design right through to dealing with the Council to ensure the planning application was successful and I would not hesitate to recommend you"

"Having recently completed our building project, we feel we must write and thank you for your services. We were nervous about what we were undertaking, but your professional approach combined with your excellent communication with ourselves, our builders, the structural engineer and the Council were very reassuring. We would be happy to recommend you to anyone who requires plans and building regulations services."

"We would have no hesitation in recommending Hampton Architecture to anyone who was looking for innovative, good design with a professional, friendly and helpful service... The drawings, measurements and instructions were so precise that the builder was able to work accurately from the plans without any problems... we couldn't be more pleased with the result”

"We just wanted to write to say thank you for your help and guidance in obtaining all the necessary permissions to enable us to proceed with the rear extension and two storey side extension at our daughter's property...The service was prompt and efficient and you always did what you promised which is so rare nowadays"

"I am writing to thank you for your effort and quality of presentation of schemes that enabled our plans to succeed... ...particularly grateful for your advice and guidance to achieve our objectives, which had on a number of occasions been rejected"

“Marcus, we absolutely LOVE it!!!!

You have made it work when we didn’t think it was possible. Love the proportions, the detailing everything is absolutely spot on. Thank you so, so much”

Not a formal testimonial as such, just an extract of a recent email, but we wanted to share : )