A Statistical Review of Don't Move, Improve! 2023

Don't Move Improve, the annual awards for home renovations organised by NLA, is a force for good in the world of domestic architecture, alongside shows like Grand Designs and companies like The Modern House, which promote the value of good design. DMI picks a handful of winning projects that spotlight issues such as sustainability and craftsmanship, but after diving deep into the most recent crop of projects I have become interested in what we can learn from looking at the 50-project longlist as a whole*. 

Geography

Don't Move Improve is open to projects in all of the 32 London boroughs (plus the City of London) but the 50 longlisted projects are not evenly distributed across the city. Over half of the eligible boroughs have no longlisted entries at all, while 9 of the entries come from a single borough - Southwark.  The longlist is highly clustered even within boroughs: 4 projects can be found in Peckham and neighbouring suburb Nunhead, 3 projects are in Walthamstow, and 3 projects all have Loughborough junction as their closest train station.

What about the classic London geographical rivalries, East London vs West London, and Norf London vs Sarf London?  

It is a completely even split between east and west (with my arbitrary dividing line drawn through the centre of The City), with 25 longlisted projects each. There are significantly more projects north of the river but this reflects the larger population - the per-head longlisting rate is virtually identical between north and south London.   

Nevertheless, there's a distinct divide within London: inner London boroughs vs. outer London boroughs.  Projects in inner London take up three quarters of the longlist, despite a significantly smaller population. When that is taken into account the difference is even clearer: There are 5 times as many projects per head in inner London.   

Why is this? As highlighted by the cluster of projects in Peckham, DMI does somewhat mirror patterns of gentrification.  This analysis from Trust for London found that from 2010-2016, outer London boroughs were generally much less subject to gentrification than inner ones.

Building age

Victorian buildings are the clear favourite for DMI-ers, and more than half of the longlist are renovations of Victorian buildings. This could relate to the geographical issues outlined above - there are likely to be many more Victorian homes in the inner boroughs than the outer boroughs, which were generally developed later as London sprawled outwards in the first decades of the 20th century.

Pre-Victorian, including Georgian: 1 Victorian: 28 Pre-War (1901s-1939) including Edwardian: 11 Post-War (1945-1979): 5 1980s onwards: 4

Only 1 building in the longlist predates the Victorian era, which likely reflects the relative rarity of older buildings, their location in the wealthiest suburbs, and their generally higher prices.   

After the Victorian era, the trend appears to be the newer the building the less likely it is to be in the longlist pool, though these newer buildings offer their own unique possibilities for reinvention, such as the only front extension on the list (more about extension types below).

Typology

The vast majority of the longlist are renovations of buildings that were originally constructed as houses, though almost a fifth of those had since been subdivided into flats.   

Only 2 out of the 50 projects on the longlist were renovations of flats in purpose-built apartment buildings, perhaps not a surprise given the opportunities houses offer for extension, which increases the ability adapt them to new needs. Yet, it hints at potential unmet demand for customization among those who either cannot or prefer not to purchase houses.    

Of the houses featured, 33 were terraces, and 13 were semi-detached, echoing the housing stock typical of inner suburbs.  There was only a single detached house amongst all the renovations, and a single mews house, which I've distinguished from terraces with back gardens. 

Given the prevalence of terraced houses, it's unsurprising that rear extensions are the most popular type of renovation, outnumbering side extensions by approximately 3 to 1.  Loft conversions, feasible in most houses, were not nearly as popular as ground floor extensions, showing that what was most desired was an expansion and opening up of living space, which typically isn't possible with a loft conversion.  

Just under half of the longlist combined multiple types of extension in a single project, and only 4 of the 50 did not include any form of extension, focusing solely on renovation within the existing building envelope.

Stylistic trends

A good 40% of the longlisted homes were decorated in a minimalist style, or at least photographed that way - who knows how much clutter was tidied away before the camera was turned on! Regardless of whether the photographs are a true representation of how these homes appear day-to-day, they do reflect the aspirations of the owners and designers to a minimalist aesthetic, exemplified by the Courtyard House designed by Yellow Cloud Studio (pictured above left).   

The other clear trend was toward natural finishes, with 28% of the longlist incorporating materials like lime or clay plaster, exposed brick and unpainted wood.  In several cases the material choices were part of the sustainability or ventilation strategy, such as Breathable House by Mike Tuck Studio, or Low Energy House by Architecture for London (pictured above right). 

Several times both trends were in evidence in a single home.  

Other statistics

Just over a third of the longlist are in conservation areas, though because I don't know how much of London is covered by conservation areas I'm not sure to what extent, if any, conservation areas are over-represented by these projects. (The white wedge in the chart represents the 4% of projects for which I couldn't determine if the home was in a conservation area or not) 

48 out of the 50 longlisted homes were credited to architectural practices, and in only two projects do design and build companies take the credit for the design (though more than two design and build companies were involved as contractors). If DMI is anything to go by, then architects are still the go-to choice for those aspiring to high-design renovations. 

Despite the popularity of rear extensions and loft conversions on the longlist, only 16% of the projects were completed as permitted development. The large number of projects in conservation areas surely had an impact on this statistic. In 10% of cases I couldn't determine whether the project was permitted development or required a planning application.

Top consultants

Several consultants were involved in more than one longlisted project, but three stood head and shoulders above the rest. Architects Proctor & Shaw designed 4 of the longlisted homes, the most of any architect. Engineers Price & Myers were involved with 5 projects, surpassed only by Blue Engineering, who take first place with 6 longlisted projects. Between them, these two engineering firms designed the structures in 20% of the longlist.  

And finally…

During my architectural studies I attended a lecture by Paul Finch, the former editor of BD, the AJ and the Architectural Review, and currently the programme director for the World Festival of Architecture. The topic was something like "50 Lessons for Architects" (my memories of the lecture are hazy) but there's one lesson that has stuck with me: Paul advised architects to give each project a name that encapsulates the story of the design, rather than resorting to the site's address. 

Paul may be pleased to see that almost two thirds of the longlisted projects have followed his advice, including the evocatively titled Pirouette House by Artefact, named for the angled blue column around which the living spaces pirouette, and Brückenhaus by R2 Studio, who have called the project after their clients favourite art movement, De Brück.   

*Note: I couldn't find comprehensive information on all the longlisted buildings (for example, whether they were located in a conservation area) so there are some analysis in which one or two cases that are unclear are left out.

Interested in more Don't Move, Improve? Check out our gallery blog post with 24 house extension ideas from the 2023 longlist.

Inspired to see what your home could become? Get started with Preview Studio and see a quick sketch design in as little as three days, to assess your potential and help you plan your project before your embark on a long journey with an architect.