In 2009 Hoskins Architects won an invited competition to design a villa in Edinburgh’s Morningside Conservation Area. Planning consent was secured without objection in November 2010, following a lengthy process of careful liaison with statutory authorities and local interest bodies due to the extremely sensitive context. Our approach was to develop a contemporary response to the string of distinguished stone villas which form the immediate context, and the project reinterprets many of its distinctive patterns – refined stonework, timber panelling, prominent bay windows, and spatial richness. The villa is split over two floors, with an additional basement level of accommodation for guests. A large suite of public rooms for entertaining are arranged on the entrance level, organised around a series of carefully controlled external spaces, whilst the upper level twists to take advantage of astonishing long views. The building is carbon neutral in operation, powered by a biomass boiler and photovoltaic cells.