Bowcliffe Hall in West Yorkshire was one of our very first commissions as a practice and it has remained close to our hearts ever since. The Hall, built between 1805 and 1825, was once the home of aviation pioneer Robert Blackburn, who built his first monoplane in 1909 and introduced it to the world by flying it along the beach between Saltburn and Marske.  We were appointed to completely overhaul the estate which is run as a very successful heritage office park, events and wedding venue and Drivers Club. We moved the carpark, which had previously clogged the entrance to the estate, and introduced a new set of suitably imposing gates and piers, opening up wonderful new views to the main elevation of the hall on arrival. At the same time, we reintroduced a glasshouse, working with Alitex to create a structure that is part double glazed for use as a meeting room for office tenants, while also creating a large new events and dining terrace across the entire rear elevation in reclaimed cathedral grade York stone. We ran an architectural competition with the client to have a new treetop events space designed, resulting in the now iconic copper-clad Blackburn Wing, sitting high amongst stately beech trees. Our reimagined flower gardens are a horticultural expression on a grand scale which, along with new walks we introduced through woods and a new orchard, provide year round colour and delight for office workers and revellers alike.