October 9 2023

New life is to be breathed into a ruinous B-listed castle in Hawick following the award of planning consent for a 'hybrid' refurbishment project that bridges the centuries between the tower house's construction in the 16th century to the present day.

Subject to repeated alterations over the years, notably a Baronial restyling in the 19th century carried out by Kinnear & Peddie Architects, Cavers Castle has endured fluctuating fortunes, reaching a nadir in 1953 with its partial demolition.

The castle's newest custodians, the Sharrer family, are seeking to secure the castle from further dilapidation with CSY Architects courtesy of a dramatic 21st-century reinterpretation of a defensive tower house.

A four-storey castellated loggia is proposed for the demolished west facade to provide new accommodation, connected directly to the past through the use of traditional lime harling, coursed rubble and ashlar sandstone. A conservation-led low-carbon strategy is being employed for the reimagining, centred on the application of a breathable envelope of hemp and lime insulation to improve thermal performance while preventing the build-up of moisture.

Julie Sharrer said: “This is our family passion project, and by undertaking a holistic conservation approach, we hope that the regeneration of this derelict, historic castle can contribute significantly to the wider cultural, historical and economic wellbeing of the area of Hawick, and the Scottish Borders as a whole."

Interventions extend to the castle grounds with the reinstatement of formal landscaping such as a walled garden and repairs to a Georgian ha-ha. 

3 Comments

#1 Posted by Mansartarchi on 12 Oct 2023 at 09:17 AM

...and the Carbuncle Award for 2025 goes to...? What's the point of the humungous turret and when did Scottish castles / Baronial tower houses include loggias? Seems somewhat confused as a contemporary addition to a KPA building - Disney could do better.

#2 Posted by Philip on 13 Oct 2023 at 14:16 PM

#1 Think about it this way: If the proposals had a glass box on the side we wouldn't say "since when did castles include glass boxes," becasue it would be clear that the glass box was a later addition. So a good question might be: does the contrast between the old and new phases need to be as stark as that? Could a different material (render) and a different form (say, a loggia) be a suitable way to declare the new phase as new, whilst making it complementary to the old?

#3 Posted by Manfredo Tafuri on 16 Oct 2023 at 10:12 AM

1. Correctomundo. Its a crap design, for many reasons, but this is just a comment forum.
2. Philip - planning schpeak par excellence there.

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