EditorCarmarthenshire farmstead reborn as striking modern home shortlisted for top Welsh architecture award
Pantybara — a bold, triangular‑plan family home created by Rural Office — is one of six projects in the running for the RSAW Welsh Architecture Awards 2026, placing the rural Carmarthenshire build among the most celebrated new designs in the country this year.
A farmstead beyond saving — rebuilt from the ground up
The original farmhouse on the site had deteriorated so badly it had to be demolished. But almost nothing went to waste. According to Rural Office, tonnes of stone were salvaged and reused to form new garden walls, keeping the spirit of the old farmstead alive in the landscape.
The new home, designed for architect Niall Maxwell, his wife Helen and their two sons, takes a completely different approach to the traditional four‑square farmhouse it replaces. Instead, Pantybara adopts a striking triangular footprint, shaped to shelter the house from the prevailing wind and open up long views across the valley.
Each side of the building faces a different garden — a courtyard to the north, terraces to the west, and a pond and woodland garden to the south — giving the home a sense of shifting character as you move around it.
Rear elevation of Pantybara, linking the new home to the former milking parlour and surrounding gardens.Photo: RSAW / Rural Office
A clever façade that hides a surprise
From the front, Pantybara plays a clever architectural trick. The façade nods to the gentrified Georgian farmhouses found across rural Wales. But walk around the corner and a 45‑degree cut reveals a smaller, more modest dwelling behind — a deliberate contrast that Rural Office describes as a “conceit”.
The new home also connects to a former milking parlour, now transformed into a hall, guest wing and utility spaces. Its long, low form echoes the traditional Welsh ty hir, blending domestic life with the site’s agricultural past.
Inside, the house celebrates Welsh craftsmanship and folklore. There are threshold markings intended to ward off evil spirits, woven fire surrounds inspired by old bwthyn wicker hoods, and varied ceiling pitches that create a sense of “buildings within a building”.
The garden and entrance to Pantybara, where Rural Office blend contemporary design with traditional Welsh farmstead forms.Photo: RSAW / Rural OfficePantybara in Carmarthenshire, a modern reinterpretation of a Welsh farmstead shortlisted for the RSAW Welsh Architecture Awards 2026.
Photo: RSAW / Rural OfficeInside Pantybara, where handcrafted details and vernacular textures shape a warm, modern family living space.
Photo: RSAW / Rural Office
A standout Welsh project in a strong national shortlist
Pantybara is the only Carmarthenshire project shortlisted this year. The full RSAW list includes:
- Alma House, Monmouthshire
- Iorwerth Jones affordable homes, Cardiff
- Porthmadog House, Gwynedd
- Severn View Park care home, Monmouthshire
- St Beuno’s Jesuit Spirituality Centre, Denbighshire
RSAW jury chair Martin Hall said the shortlisted buildings “exemplify the talent shown by their architects and construction teams”, adding that the projects range from “important social needs in elder care and housing” to “virtuosity in the design of one‑off dwellings”.
What happens next
All shortlisted buildings will now be visited by a regional jury, with winners announced later this spring. Successful projects will then be considered for UK‑wide RIBA awards, including the prestigious RIBA National Awards — the shortlist from which the Stirling Prize, the UK’s top architecture honour, is drawn.
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Ma Quest 
