Rural community housing,

Braemar, Cairngorms National Park

(working with Rural Housing Scotland)

Braemar is one of those archetypal, pretty Highland villages that is good to live in and great to visit. Making sure that balance is maintained is no easy task, and central to its success is the provision of affordable housing for those who wish to stay in the village and to move there.

This project, a feasibility study for Braemar Community Ltd, explored how a site on the edge of the village could be developed for greater community benefit.

The site, which is surrounded by unmanaged conifers to the south and west and is accessed by a narrow track, already had planning consent for 11 houses and flats. However, together with consultation and discussion with the community, it became clear that something better might be possible.

The result is an outline design that could deliver up to 15 highly insulated houses and flats - all away from the overshaded area caused by the conifers - in a ‘Braemar style’ together with a new access road.