The Home of 2030 competition invited masterplans for homes of the future which address One Planet Living and meet the highest standards of design. It is a cross-government initiative that feeds into the development of government policy and we hope, the delivery of more healthy, green homes.
Straw Works’ entry was longlisted, making it 29th out of over 250 entries. Barbara also worked as a specialist consultant on Outpost’s entry – Janus House – which was shortlisted in the final six.
Both entries used EcoCocon panels which are a Cradle to Cradle Certified™ product, making an important move towards the circular economy that the industry needs to embrace by no later than 2030. Work with this innovative system continues beyond the competition:
- Barbara is one of EcoCocon’s UK reps and Straw Works design with the panels
- Outpost are now working with igloo Regeneration to build six EcoCocon houses for the Sunderland Future Living Expo in 2023
Straw Works’ Entry
Healthy, low impact living is a real possibility with our inclusive and deliverable model. Designed with access in mind, the proposed house type allows for ground floor flats suited to the differently abled and elderly occupants, with upper floor flats for others, allowing for a diverse mix of residents. Communal gardens and food growing spaces encourage social connectivity and nurture biodiversity with bat and bird boxes and insect habitats.
EcoCocon’s prefabricated system allows for rapid assembly to keep costs down and lends itself to adaptability for additional storeys or apartment blocks. The panels, when combined with a passive ventilation system with heat recovery and solar PV, would produce a house that is better than net zero carbon.
Janus House – ‘From pre to post-petroleum society’
The project team was led by Outpost, with input from Barbara and other partners – Propagating Dan, Gaia Group, Max Fordham, Milk, Momentum and EcoCocon.
The Janus House Community was designed to bring together the built and natural environment to form a strong sense of place. The concept was founded on a need to support health, comfort, affordability, communities and biodiversity. The complete design offers a neighbourhood that sequesters carbon and promotes a healthy and happy way of life for residents. Individual homes are interspersed with communal facilities and green spaces. It also uses EcoCocon’s modular housing system, with the straw and timber panels providing a modern take on traditional biomass materials and construction that achieve Passivhaus levels of efficiency.
We are incredibly proud of our achievements and have been inspired by the innovation of other entries. You can see details of the finalists here.