How to build the perfect extension and what to avoid

• Open-plan living spaces, natural light and a greater connection to nature are the most common motivations for adding an extension to a property today. Yet these were of little concern to the Victorian architects and builders who were responsible for designing much of the terraced housing that exists in our towns and cities. The country’s housing stock more than doubled in the period between 1851 and 1911; during that time—and for decades after—the main aim of house builders was to provide shelte