Inside a Gregory Phillips Architects Home: The Architecture of Living Well

Homes by Gregory Phillips Architects are conceived for long-term use rather than display. Luxury is defined less by scale than by how closely a space supports daily life.

Across its private residential work, the studio prioritises alignment between architecture and occupation. Projects are not conceived as abstract statements, but as environments shaped to the specific needs and routines of their clients.

The Berkshire project is a five-bedroom riverside house in Caversham, designed for a client with long-standing ties to the site. The brief required the replacement of a family home while preserving mature trees and maintaining privacy alongside open views to the River Thames.

Bedroom wings are elevated into the tree canopy above a transparent, open-plan ground floor, allowing the building to sit lightly within its landscape. Piled foundations protect root systems, and no trees were removed. The project received a RIBA Award and was shortlisted for House of the Year.

This approach reflects the working method of Gregory Phillips Architects. The studio specialises in bespoke private homes shaped by site constraints, patterns of use, and long-term occupation. Outcomes vary by context, from vertical organisation and landscape-led planning to accommodation for multigenerational living and heritage settings.

The Radlett project applies the studio’s integrated approach to a formal suburban context. A contemporary interpretation of a Georgian villa defines the front elevation, while the interior is organised around a triple-height entrance hall with a direct axis to the landscaped garden and swimming pool.

Ground-floor spaces are arranged as a sequence of interconnected zones for family living and entertaining, including an open kitchen, dining, and living area opening to the garden, a home office, and an informal cinema and hobby room. A separate gym and spa are located within the rear garden.

Upper-level bedrooms are accessed via the principal stair within the atrium, with a secondary stair connecting to a guest and leisure suite at roof level. The rear façade and interior detailing shift to a more contemporary expression, articulated through refined materials and precise craftsmanship.

Design decisions at Gregory Phillips Architects are guided by long-term use rather than short-term effect. Projects are conceived as durable living environments, shaped around how spaces are occupied, maintained, and adapted over time, rather than as isolated responses to a brief.

Architecture, interiors, and landscape are developed in parallel from the earliest stages. This integrated process allows issues of layout, daylight, circulation, and spatial relationships to be resolved early, reducing the need for late-stage revisions and producing more coherent outcomes across disciplines.

The studio’s work is largely focused on private residences commissioned as long-term homes. As a result, emphasis is placed on material longevity, functional clarity, and consistency across the design and delivery process. Projects are structured through clearly defined phases, supported by a team organised to manage complex residential briefs with continuity from concept through completion.

The studio has received recognition from both peers and the press. In addition to national coverage and awards for the Berkshire home, it has been acknowledged by the UK Property Awards and the Luxury Lifestyle Awards. These distinctions reflect the studio’s ability to address complex briefs with solutions that balance design quality and technical rigour.

The practice is structured around longevity. Materials are selected for durability, layouts are planned to adapt over time, and design decisions are guided by function and daily use. In a Gregory Phillips home, luxury is inherent to the architecture rather than applied. The result is a home designed to endure and to remain relevant for those who live in it.

Disclaimer: Written in partnership with APG.