Known as the Paxton Locher House, this gated courtyard house was designed in the mid-1990s by London architects Richard Paxton and Heidi Locher (now known as Studio Locher) for their own use. Overlooking one of the city’s oldest and prettiest public squares, it hides within a row of contemporary office blocks, accessed via the street through a gated passage and a small courtyard. The stainless-steel front door links a compressed threshold to an airy double-height interior.

At ground level, the kitchen, dining and living spaces sit around a central glass atrium; a gas fireplace separates the void from a more enclosed sitting area. Above, the glazed roof slides back in warmer months, turning the interior into an open courtyard. In colder seasons it remains closed, bringing light down from above.

Bedrooms line the first floor, facing into the atrium through full-height glazing that can be opened to form Juliette balconies. Each has an en suite. A larger room on the second floor, now used as a study and library, leads to a roof terrace.

The house nestles just behind Clerkenwell Green, in a conservation area between the City and Islington. It’s currently on the market for £3 million.

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