Bob Pierce of Rostrum was engaged by us initially in 2005 on a relatively small project to change our bathroom and renovate the rooms above our garage. My wife was pregnant at the time and we needed the work to be completed before the birth. The work was completed on time, on budget and to a level of detail and finish that was above our expectations.

The following year we embarked on a much larger project. It involved a major extension to our house, the refurbishment of a barn in our garden, overseeing the complete re-landscaping of our garden, building a timber tile-hung shed and re-landscaping and designing our drive way. We also undertook changes within our house including moving walls, changing the staircase and replacing an Amtico floor with a real wooden floor. Our house is approximately 500 years old, grade 2 listed and the work needed to be of an extremely high quality so as not to spoil the look of the building.

Although we had a reasonably detailed set of plans for our house, working in a listed building seems to be a somewhat unknown quantity, and Rostrum were invaluable in helping us with the design and fine detail. We had the feeling that they were treating it with the same care as if it were their own house, and certainly much thought was put into the project off sight and in their own time.

Again the attention to detail and care shown surpassed our expectations. The walls were faced with reclaimed bargate stone, interlaced with ironstone galetting, all sourced by Rostrum. Old beams were carefully used to match those of the house, again sourced by Rostrum. Visitors are unable to tell the new from old parts of our home.

Whilst we initially set out with a detailed specification and a price we decided that, rather than rigidly stick to this specification, we would allow the project to grow and develop and review costs along the way. With most builders this would be a dangerous and potentially a very costly approach, but with our previous experience we had confidence in the company and we were not let down. It seems inevitable that one adopts the approach of 'while were doing this we might as well do that... etc.' and as our project grew we had confidence that the costs were manageable and inline with discussions.

We have recommended Rostrum to three close friends all who have been delighted with their work, and even our landscape designer was so impressed with their work and attention to detail that he used them to build his own house.

Rostrum are first class builders. They undertake one major project at a time, Bob Pierce leads from the front, is always present and managed both the process and us superbly well. In the end we have a beautiful house and garden that exceeded all our expectations and we can recommend Rostrum without hesitation.

Stephen L.
Restoration