The Trainspotter’s House
Sheffield
The Trainspotter’s House is a compact but carefully crafted side extension to a Victorian terrace on Psalter Lane, Sheffield. The project transforms a previously dark kitchen by introducing a light-filled threshold space that redefines the relationship between inside and out.
The extension is conceived as a lightweight, glazed volume, expressed clearly against the solidity of the existing house. Slim metal-framed glazing and a glazed roof draw daylight deep into the plan, while maintaining a strong sense of enclosure and privacy within the tight urban context.
Externally, vertical timber cladding softens the new intervention and provides a warm counterpoint to the surrounding brickwork.
Internally, a bright yellow rubber floor runs continuously through the extension, acting as both a unifying surface and a deliberate visual marker. The colour reflects light into the adjacent spaces and gives the small addition a strong identity, while the robust material is well suited to everyday family use. Thresholds between old and new are carefully detailed, allowing the extension to read as a distinct yet integrated part of the house.
Despite its modest footprint, the extension has a significant impact on how the house is used, bringing light, clarity and a new spatial rhythm to the kitchen and adjoining rooms.
