Writing in the Sunday Times this month, journalist Hugh Graham observed that social distancing is needed inside the home as well outside, as the limitations of open-plan living suddenly become apparent. These are, we hope, extraordinary times and we’ll need a period of reflection before making long-lasting changes to our way of life, but covid-19’s lasting legacies will surely include a re-evaluation of how we live, work and interact with those around us.

Home has possibly never been more important: in the literal sense, it is now our “safe haven”. But how well is it coping with the huge range of activities that we undertake every day – including those which usually take place elsewhere?

The fact that families, and other co-habitees, need spaces to come together and spaces to be apart, was one of the founding principles of the London Housing Design Guide. It led to reasonably generous minimum sizes for bedrooms and living/dining/kitchen spaces and more storage than had typically been provided before.

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