Our clients – who are very climate and ecologically conscious – wanted a small and highly sustainable new home near the beach in suburban Scarborough.

The subdivided 430sqm block has laneway frontage, and our design sought to balance garden and internal living spaces, to achieve an equitable relationship between the two.

The small, narrow footprint of the house maximises the long northern aspect, where large expanses of glazing provide wonderful connections to the outdoors.

These windows and doors are shaded to eliminate all summer and shoulder season sun, while allowing winter sun to penetrate the rooms and passively warm the house.

This design works hard to optimise the home’s passive thermal performance – resulting in a 7.9-star NatHERS rating – while reducing its overall carbon footprint. This led to an 85% reduction in Global Warming Potential compared with the average new build.

Status: Completed 2023

Project Type: Homes – new build

Client:   Private

Materials: concrete, brick, timber, cement sheet

CREDITS:

Team: MDC Architects, Dwyer Landscape Design

Builder: WD Harris

AWARDS:

Western Australian Architecture Awards 2026

Sustainability

Winner of The Wallace Greenham Award for Sustainable Architecture Award

Jury citation:

Hinderwell is tucked behind an existing dwelling, presenting a linear northern aspect across a simply landscaped garden. Landscape makes up 70% of the site. The place exemplifies sustainability in a modest-scale project.

Major glazing faces north to deliver natural light and winter solar gain to all of the living spaces. South-facing windows are kept to the minimum. External walls are constructed in thermally efficient reverse veneer construction.

Planning is simple and clear and offers flexibility in use. The project explores material innovation with expressive details, favouring recycled, low carbon, and Australian made materials in the palette, while maintaining a cost-conscious lens.

The NatHERs and LCA ratings show that the project performs well technically.

The house achieves an 8-star NatHERS rating, an 87% carbon saving over its lifetime, greywater recycling, and rainwater harvesting. The house performs well against the sustainability criteria.

Hinderwell House is humble, yet its message to the architectural profession is weighty and critical: it showcases sustainable design strategies that the industry must support by broadcasting and scaling them. It is economically sustainable, successfully arguing against the narrative that sustainability is expensive.

Sustainability Awards 2024

Single Dwelling (New)

Highly Commended

HOUSES Awards 2025

New House Under 200m2

Shortlisted