Weymede V
Byfleet, Surrey
Architect: Eric Lyons
Register for similar homes“An outstanding Span house positioned in the sought-after Weymede Estate, replete with original architectural details”
Built in the 1960s, this charming three-bedroom terraced house lies within the tranquil setting of the Weymede Estate in Byfleet. This is an idyllic estate designed by architect Eric Lyons for the renowned development company Span. Measuring approximately 958 sq ft the house is wonderfully light and replete with original architectural details. It opens onto a private rear garden, one of the largest on the estate. For more information on Span, please see the History section below.
The Architect
Architect Eric Lyons collaborated closely with Span Developments in the 1950s and ’60s to bring the concept of international modernism to the masses. Lyons began his career working under Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius; he then went on to fuse the fundamental concepts of Gropius and Le Corbusier with the British vernacular to create efficient, bright, practical homes.
As with all of Lyons’s Span developments, the houses on the Weymede Estate have been designed to maximise the qualities of light and space and enhance the relationship between the buildings and the surrounding landscape. Lyons took care to design and build houses around existing mature trees; along with supplementary new planting, communal areas were created, encouraging residents to mix.
The Tour
Due its distance from the road and location amongst mature broad-leaved trees, grassy lawns and bushy shrubs, this house occupies a lovely and quiet position on the Weymede Estate. It retains much of its mid-century detailing; glazed, sliding and flush teak fronted doors, exposed brickwork and a simply designed staircase.
The ground floor entrance hall leads to a bright and generous living room. The wall of glazing at the rear of the plan blurs the boundary between inside and out and leads directly to the enticing private garden, a feature that is typical of Span homes. The open-plan dining room and kitchen are adjacent, separated from the living space by a wide sliding screen to one side and double doors at the other. There is blue and white cabinetry, a high-level open pine storage screen, and exposed whitewashed brickwork. A WC and handy storage cupboards complete the layout on this level.
A straight flight of stairs leads up to the first floor, where there are three lofty bedrooms with sloping ceilings that follow the roofline, exposed ridge beams, and whitewashed brickwork. Original cabinetry and abundant storage are present throughout, and all of the rooms have verdant views over the surrounding communal gardens. The neutral family bathroom has stippled windows.
Outdoor Space
This house is thought to be one of the estate’s original show homes. Its secluded private garden is one of the largest on the estate and can be accessed either directly from the rear of the ground floor plan or independently via a timber gate at the end of the garden.
The central lawn is edged with colourful borders, well-stocked with evergreens, bushes of red berries, catkins and a pretty purple smoke tree. There is lots of space to relax and play and to enjoy a morning coffee or spot of alfresco dining. There is a handy garden shed and occasional opportunity to rent a garage.
The house also has access to the immaculately kept communal gardens that run down to the River Wey.
The Area
Weymede is one of the best located of the Span estates. The houses are laid out amongst 12.5 acres of green, communal grounds, landscaper Ivor Cunningham. Together with the private riverside, this makes it an enviably attractive setting. Regular events and festivals are organised within the grounds throughout the year by Weymede residents. The estate also backs onto woodland, to which it has access. This, in turn, leads to the historic Brooklands Museum.
Weymede is close to a range of supermarkets, shops and restaurants in Brooklands, West Byfleet and Weybridge. Taylors offers a wonderful local coffee stop whilst Sweet Passion Cakes a delicious spread of indulgent pastries. A traditional Sunday lunch is served at The Queen’s Head, southern Indian fare at Kayal and a Lebanese feast at Beit Beirut. Brooklands Shopping Centre is within easy walking distance and houses a variety of stores.
The A3 and M25 are approximately two miles away, leading directly into central London, 25 miles to the northeast. Heathrow can be reached in 20 minutes, Gatwick within 40 minutes and the south coast accessed in approximately an hour.
The area is well served by railway stations at Byfleet & New Haw, West Byfleet and Weybridge. Byfleet & New Haw is approximately one mile from Weymede and runs services into London Waterloo in approximately 30 minutes. West Byfleet runs services into London Waterloo in under 30 minutes, and Weybridge to central London is a commute of under 30 minutes.
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
Span, which built thirty housing estates between the 1950s and 1980s, was one of the few mass-housing companies that truly understood the value of good architecture and design. The basic tenets of a Span home were in part a reaction against mock Tudor design, which was so prevalent in post-war architecture. They hoped to illustrate that individually-designed and affordable homes could be built in the middle ground between large council estates and mansions and also hoped to prove that planned estates could be genuine communities.
Eric Lyons (1912-1980) co-founded Span in 1948, along with Geoffrey Townsend and Leslie Bilsby. Lyons’s Span houses are about space and light and blurring the edges between outdoor and indoor space. He paid great attention to the surrounding landscape, designing and building homes around existing mature trees and creating communal areas that encourage residents to mix.
A typical Span house used new construction techniques and featured open-plan interiors with large areas of glass and would be integrated into the Cunningham-designed landscape where “the architectural quality of the village will be achieved by the close relationship between building and landscape”. This relationship is protected by covenants administered by a committee of management most commonly drawn from volunteer residents.
An early Span publication summarises the origin of the name: “It spans the gap between the suburban monotony of the typical ‘spec building’ and the architecturally designed individually built residence.” Lyons carried out several other schemes outside of his Span work, including public housing for World’s End in Chelsea. He was appointed President of the RIBA in the 1970s.
