In the 1590s, Sir Thomas Tresham designed the Triangular Lodge at Rushton while imprisoned for his Catholic faith. Unable to worship publicly, he expressed his belief through geometry — every element in threes for the Holy Trinity: three sides, each thirty-three and a third feet long, three floors, trefoil windows, three triangular gables per facade. The inscription above the door reads Tres Testimonium Dant — there are three that bear witness — a statement of faith that is also a pun on his own name. What interests me as an architect is the conviction: a building that says something its maker could not say any other way. Architecture as coded meaning, every dimension carrying intent. The Lodge, now in the care of English Heritage, is one of the most extraordinary buildings in the country. The village sits near Kettering.
Award-winning Architects in Rushton
Architecture That Means Something
Our projects have been published in Dezeen, Grand Designs Magazine and The Modern House Journal — work united by the conviction that every design decision should carry intent. I founded Gresford Architects in London in 2006, and we now work from Oxford with clients across the country. I am an ARB-registered and RIBA Chartered architect, a member of SPAB — the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings — the Passivhaus Trust and The Green Register. The Deerings, a certified Passivhaus home in Hertfordshire, won the RIBA East Award in 2018, the year I was also a finalist for Sustainability Architect of the Year at the Building Design Awards. In 2025 I was invited to judge the British Homes Awards.
Architectural Services Near Kettering
EnerPHit, the Passivhaus Institute's certified retrofit standard, addresses the thermal performance of older homes without compromising their character. The cottages in Rushton present the familiar challenge of solid-walled construction: thick walls with no insulation, draughty junctions, and a building envelope that predates any concept of thermal efficiency. Vapour-open insulation, careful airtightness detailing, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery can transform them — warmer, quieter, dramatically cheaper to run — while the stone facades continue to weather as they always have.
Renovations in Rushton engage with a building stock shaped by the village's association with the Tresham family and the Rushton Hall estate. The Triangular Lodge demonstrates that architectural ambition has deep roots here, and any work in the village should reflect that history. North Northamptonshire Council handles planning for the parish. Through my membership of SPAB, I approach these buildings with the understanding that solid stone walls manage moisture through their mass and their lime mortar — and that any renovation must work with that behaviour.
Sustainable Design connects every project we take on, and in Rushton the Triangular Lodge is a reminder that every dimension of a building can carry meaning — and that the best architecture is the kind where nothing is arbitrary. PassivHaus Design sets our benchmark for new construction, delivering certified comfort with minimal energy demand. New Build Design in Rushton should respect the limestone character of the village and the extraordinary standard set by Tresham's Lodge. For sites in the countryside around the parish, Paragraph 84 of the National Planning Policy Framework provides a route to architecturally outstanding homes — but the design must demonstrate the same deliberateness that placed every window, every gable and every inscription with purpose.
Extension Design in Rushton should respond to the village's stone character and the proportions of its buildings. The relationship between the houses, the lanes and the wider estate landscape creates a settlement with a strong identity. Whether the brief is a ground-floor extension connecting the house to the garden, a garden room, or additional space above, the design should make the whole building feel more resolved.
Rushton's Triangular Lodge was designed so that every dimension would carry meaning. If you are considering a project here, we would welcome the conversation.