A COUPLE who built a stunning modern home in the garden of their 170-year-old Georgian mansion have been given a national award.

Mike and Eileen Leatherland buried half of their contemporary oak-framed house into the hillside at Crawleyside, County Durham, yet still retained panoramic views over Weardale.

With the garden landscaped and all the major construction and internal work completed, they won best small housing project at the Local Authority Building Control’s National Building Excellence Awards in London.

The Washington Primary Healthcare Centre, in Wearside, was named best health building.

From the outside, the Leatherlands’ home, Crawley Edge, could almost be a traditional country bungalow with the benefits of a spectacular hillside setting.

But the couple’s bold ideas and attention to detail have pushed the boundaries of convention to produce a comfortable yet cutting-edge threestorey glass and timber building.

They came up with an overall design for architect Keith Ridley to work from, and were involved in every aspect of the three-year construction project.

With energy conservation high on their agenda, they included high-specification insulation, argon-filled windows, a ground-source heat pump and surface water drains feeding into a triangular pond.

Intelligent lighting and a music and multimedia network system are at the cutting edge of technology, as is the circular Italian kitchen with half-height windows framing views of a disused limestone quarry.

Above the couple’s groundfloor bedroom, an upstairs laundry and dressing room leads to a library and glass bridge and viewing area overlooking the open-plan lounge below.

Downstairs, workrooms, a wine cellar and pantry are built into the hill, with a study offering more views over the decked garden and the countryside.

Mr Leatherland is a clock restorer. His wife, a glass designer, said: “We are outdoor people with two dogs, so we wanted a place that we could enjoy living in. For us, the house has exceeded our expectations and there is nothing we would change.

“We had an excellent working relationship with the planners, who were very bold in accepting such a groundbreaking design, and the building control team at the old Wear Valley District Council, now Durham County Council, who entered the house in the competition.”

Building control officer Ted Lidster said: “The success of the house is a testament to the vision and determination of Mr and Mrs Leatherland.

“It is the best building I have come across in 30 years of building control.”