Castle High / Hyde + Hyde Architects

Castle High is a contemporary farmhouse in the Pembrokeshire National Park. This extraordinary coastal home - built by the owner for his family over a decade - is a testament to hard work, persistence and dedication. The owners approached Hyde + Hyde in 2010 to develop a master plan for their smallholding, which occupies an exposed site close to the Pembrokeshire coast. As the current generation of an old farming family, they were determined to remain on the site but found the existing 1950s farmhouse in poor condition, thermally inefficient and no longer fit for purpose. This had replaced the site's original working farmhouse, which would have framed a functional, sheltered courtyard alongside the traditional stone outbuildings. However, the replacement house lacked the integrity of the older buildings, and its seemingly random position left the courtyard open to harsh prevailing winds and violent storms, slowly falling into disrepair.