Holland Park Living
Holland Park houses
Click one of these topics relating to Holland Park houses.
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How Holland Park houses have changedMany of Holland Park houses today were originally stables. This is the case with all original mews houses which were built in streets behind the real Holland Park houses. The Victorians would recognise the facades of Holland Park houses today, but be amazed by the change in use behind, since most original Holland Park houses have now been converted into flats. |
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Growth in size of Holland Park housesThe Georgians built relatively small Holland Park houses. These have generally remained in use as family houses today. Throughout the Victorian period Holland Park houses became ever larger, to accommodate large families and the necessary servants. Frequently Holland Park houses might contain a family with 9 children and 10 or more servants. Many Holland Park houses have been converted to use as embassies. When you go to an embassy and consider the number of people working there, it is amazing to think that it was considered the right size as a Holland Park house for just one family in Victorian times. |
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Social reasons for house designHolland Park houses were built for discrimination. Holland Park houses were often built with 2 staircases: one grand staircase at the front for the family and a smaller one at the rear for servants to reach their quarters at the top of the house. Equally the main entrance to Holland Park houses was up steps to a grand main door. The servants and tradesmen had to use the steps down to a semi-basement door leading to the kitchen.
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Different ground levelsIn most streets the Holland Park houses are at different ground levels at front and back. When the area was developed, many streets were built up above ground level at the front of Holland Park houses with steps running down from street level to a semi-basement level. But the semi-basements of Holland Park houses are at genuine ground level – you walk straight out of the back into the gardens. |
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Brick faced buildingsHolland Park houses in Georgian times usually had brick facades. The compulsory use of bricks instead of wood was introduced after the Great Fire of London. Bricks for Holland Park houses were generally made on site. Even when Holland Park houses are faced in plaster and painted - as with many squares - the structure behind is made of brick, but of a cheaper quality.
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Stucco and painted facadesInfluenced by the Italian style, the Victorians started covering their Holland Park houses with stucco, which they then painted. The use of white or cream in Holland Park houses which you see all over Central London, was a much later tradition. They scored the plaster or rusticated it, to make it look like painted blocks of stone. Most of the ornamental carving above doors and windows and on the cornices of Holland Park houses is, in fact, moulded from forms of stone plaster. |
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Building regulations for Holland Park housesThere were rigorous rules about how far wood frames had to be recessed in the brickwork of Holland Park houses and the use and size of balconies. Generally there had to be metal balconies outside first floor windows as an escape for fire purposes. This, as much as architectural taste, created the look of Holland Park houses. |
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Holland Park houses todayThere are three general categories of Holland Park houses today. Most mews have been converted to Holland Park houses. (See 'How Holland Park houses have changed' above.) Then there have been new properties built, usually mimicking mews houses to some extent. Often these are private 'gated' developments. Both these types provide Holland Park houses of a size suitable for today's small families. Finally there are some original Victorian Holland Park houses, which are likely to be fairly enormous and therefore most suitable to a Middle Eastern prince or a Russian billionaire. Such Holland Park houses have survived as houses till the 21st century precisely because they were always the grandest houses from the start. |
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Freehold and leasehold Holland Park housesIn most of England, if you own a house you generally own the freehold. But Holland Park houses are often sold on leases, especially if they are within one of the traditional London estates. Holland Park house on leases are not worth as much as identical freehold houses, so it is usually worthwhile to consider whether the lease can be extended or whether you can buy the freehold. There are statutory rights to buy houses in many cases. But either way, Holland Park houses will continue to command huge prices. |
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Maintaining and altering Holland Park housesMany Holland Park houses are listed buildings. if they are Grade I then even an internal re-paint requires approval from the Council and English Heritage. Most listed Holland Park houses are Grade II which means that you certainly need approval for any alterations. It's a criminal offence do do works to a listed Holland Park house without such approval. For Holland Park houses which aren't listed at all, then you may still need planning permission of any external alterations (mansard roofs, altering windows, adding extensions) but not for most internal works. However most types of work beyond the purely cosmetic to Holland Park houses will require building regulation consent - approval by the local council building surveyor that the works meet the necessary building standards. |
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