14 of London's best home improvements make the shortlist for the Don’t Move, Improve! 2025 competition

The 14 standout projects shortlisted for Don’t Move, Improve! 2025 have been shared with Bustler by organizers at New London Architecture. A public voting period will follow until it closes on February 5th, followed by the announcement of the winners and People's Choice winner on February 19th. 

Federico Ortiz, Head of Program for NLA, offers: "This year’s shortlist exemplifies the power of thoughtful home design to transform not just spaces but the way we live. These projects offer inspiration and practical solutions for Londoners looking to improve their homes, demonstrating that great design is accessible to all. From small-scale refurbishments to bold architectural statements, these homes are proof that Londoners are embracing the potential of their spaces in incredible ways."

This will be the annual competition's 16th overall edition. Be sure to check back here for the results at that time. Until then, here's a look at the unique residential renovations and remodels that stood out while capturing the diversity and character that is synonymous with London’s homes. 

Terzetto by ConForm Architects

"Terzetto unlocks a contemporary haven in Hampstead, using calm materiality and sharp craftsmanship to intimately connect the apartment to light and the verdant garden, lined with mature trees. The project provides an enlarged two-bedroom apartment for our client, who wanted a home from which he can be in comfort and privacy whilst making the most of views of the large, green garden he bought the property for. To enhance these views, the materials have been purposefully curated, and openings have been sculpted. The resultant space is a textural and natural home, at one with the elements and its environment."

Nina's House by Nina+Co with ROAR

"The site in South Tottenham, originally built as a clergy house for the church next door, is in the 95th percentile for air pollution nationally. The ground floor was remodeled to an open-plan layout, bringing the small garage and porch into the thermal envelope. A decision was taken early not to extend the property, but to make good use of what was already there, spending budget predominantly on infrastructure and technical performance; removal of gas supply, installation of an air-source heat pump, underfloor heating, new doors and windows, cork cladding, extensive insulative work, and a huge endeavor to improve air-tightness."

Steel House by EBBA ARCHITECTS 

"This ambitious yet sensitive renovation of a traditional terraced house combines contemporary interventions to help stitch in a series of additions to the home. A full-width double-height extension embraces the available natural light deep into the plan while the new internal void makes for a more cohesive sequence of spaces that support contemporary ways of living. Prioritising the use of natural materials and earthy tones, the renovation creates warm and inviting spaces that promote a sense of calm. Altogether the extensive structural changes are made to look seamless, just as the new stitches in effortlessly into the old."

Elemental House by Archmongers 

"Johan Hybschmann, director at Archmongers, and his wife, Anita Freeman, have remodelled their London home, a 1970s split-level house located in Hackney. The renovation has future-proofed the house for modern living, enhancing the home’s energy efficiency, whilst bringing natural light deep into the plan. The design scheme employs a simple palette of existing materials including brick, galvanised steel, cast concrete, and timber."

RAW House by O'Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects

"A thoughtfully designed home and gallery in south London that reflects the owners’ vision for a versatile environment and the architect’s commitment to rework the previously disconnected layout to an adaptable hybrid working and living condition where everyday duties are easily integrated into the family’s lives, exploring the boundaries and flow between private and public spaces. The architect worked with what existed, developed an understanding of the potential to both reinvent and protect the building, extending its lifespan and providing a cost effective and lower-carbon alternative that included the integration of the garden without adding an extension."

House extension in Islington by VATRAA

"The homeowner, a family of four, commissioned VATRAA to transform a former HMO into a personalized home, reconnected with the garden and surroundings. Internal insulation and ASHP boost environmental performance, while reclaimed bricks and raw materials - lime plaster, stainless steel and oak - bring back the property's lost character. Spaces were designed to suit the family’s lifestyle, from a music room with a stage to a gym for karate training and a library for the book collection. The kitchen extension was sunken until the seating level matched the garden, creating a special connection that promotes wellbeing."

Upper Addison Gardens by Woodrow Vizor Architects & LonProp 

"Upper Addison Gardens is the experimentation of a material philosophy that applies to thousands of rooftops over London and beyond. Utilising timber as primary exposed structure, where too often steel is default, has lowered the project’s embodied carbon, whilst making workability easier and working at height safer for the construction team. The end result is a biophilic material backdrop for the client's open plan family space. A synergy then exists to being ‘up’ in the canopy of a tree and at this height the clients enjoy the changing backdrop of street trees from stunning spring blossom to golden autumn hues."

Hands-on Home by Natallia Tanko

"Hands-on Home is a self-built transformation led by the homeowners, who took on the roles of client, designer, and contractor. Embracing their weekends, they extended and renovated their 1970s ground-floor flat over five years, balancing work and family life without financial strain. This hands-on approach became a way to embody their values, reflecting a commitment to a simpler, more authentic lifestyle. Their step-by-step process allowed them to adapt to evolving needs, experiment with materials, and celebrate the power of DIY. This heartfelt home represents a shared journey across three generations, with grandparents helping and kids learning along the way."

Aperture House by Curtaz Studio

"The clients – an architectural photographer and fashion designer by trade – sought to remodel their home in a way that reflected their shared love for photography and nature. The concept was to capture key views of surrounding greenery through a series of framed apertures: second-floor oriel windows angle towards a cluster of mature trees; ground-floor wall/joinery lines are similarly skewed to open up views to the garden and trees beyond, with frameless glass admitting the vistas with minimal obstruction. Off black is used on the apertures to accentuate/brighten the natural views, paired with oak surfaces add warmth/organic texture."

Plaster House by Sonn Studio 

"The flat is located within a row of Victorian terraced houses in Hackney on a bustling market street. The client brief was to add an additional bedroom to the flat whilst also providing a greater connection to the garden. Dropping the floor was a challenge especially due to an existing public sewer crossing the property, but this allowed for a sunken conversation pit letting the occupants sit level with the garden while increasing the feeling of height. The space is an unexpected secluded oasis in an urban area."

Hope Villa by Proctor & Shaw 

"Re-duce, re-use, re-new - The project is small in footprint but impactful in architectural quality harnessing sustainability at its core. The existing side extension was stripped back to floor finishes with steel frame and groundworks retained, and remodelled with a highly insulated warm deck roof, with re-used roof lights, supporting a new tiered allotment garden above. The small patio was infilled with a double-storey height space articulated with large special windows, thick timber framed construction is highly insulated and clad with sustainable Accoya timber battens. A new bio-diverse ‘rain garden’ leads to the timber-framed garden room."

Hartley House by THISS Studio

"Careful renovation of the ground floor of a terraced family house in Leytonstone. The project involved unlocking the existing and underused space in the house to meet the needs of a young family without extending the property or using any additional concrete foundations."

Datum House by The DHaus Company Ltd 

"The concept for the scheme centred around three key elements that were tested. One, an internal reconfiguration of the existing lower ground floor, that allowed for the creation of a bedroom at the front of the property and to re-orientate the living spaces to face onto the secluded garden, Two, full width skylight that spanned the entire width of the property. And three, monolithic sculptural wall that serves both as a threshold between inside and out but also as a multifunctional piece of furniture that concealed doors & Screening."

Lordship Park by Bindloss Dawes Architects 

"When our client bought 28 Lordship Park it was a neglected property containing bedsit accommodation, suffering from historic bomb damage and subsidence. Bindloss Dawes was approached to repair the building, but also to convert it back into a single-family home. As well as a substantial rear extension, the work included a loft extension, a basement excavation and rethinking key living and sleeping spaces. The design combines a sensitive approach to adjacent buildings within the Conservation Area, at the same time creating a distinct and contemporary addition, containing an expressed cruciform reinforced concrete structure that stabilised the house."