ARCHITECTS in Chalford have designed a 40ft-high dream home nestled in a cluster of trees.

As a child Jon Martin used to walk past the woodland space in Dursley and has always longed to live there.

Now his boyhood dream has become a reality and was even featured on Channel 4's Grand Designs.

“Who doesn't dream of living in a treehouse,” the  53-year-old said.

His new home, which he shares with his partner Noreen Jaafar, 46, looks as though it is suspended in the air on steel stilts but appearances can be deceiving.

An art studio for Noreen, who is a ceramic artist, on the ground floor is hidden underneath the first storey of the larch-clad treehouse.

The open plan, four-bedroom home that Jon and Noreen share with their cats is surrounded by a wooden veranda and is accessible via a ramp.

Noreen has also added her personal touch painting the tiles in their kitchen with butterflies and birds.

Although their treehouse is now a reality it took the couple years of living in a caravan and two unsuccessful planning applications to build a more conventional home on the plot before they hit on a way forward.

They said that it was Chalford-based Millar + Howard Workshop's innovative design plan for the property, which peeks out of the canopy of trees, which finally won planners over.

“The planners were really supportive of our scheme and this project is a great example of working collaboratively with a forward-thinking planning office allowing for creativity,” said Tomas Millar, one of the founding members of architecture practice who came up with the designs.

“We loved this site and instantly wanted to include the trees which surrounded the plot,” he said.

“Rather than shy away from these natural obstacles we embraced their beauty.

“We honoured and celebrated what the site provided, we took inspiration from their form for the concept of the building design.”

But building a house among protected trees in a conservation area was not simple.

“The listed trees on this site meant that the steel supports required to reinforce the structure caused a few problems,” said Tomas.

“We love conundrums so we got out our sketch books and started inventing.

“Soon we'd resolved the problem on paper and before too long, in reality too.”

Tomas solved the complication by designing the house to be moored with a steel structure and screw piles, a ground-anchoring system used for building deep foundations.

He said: “Jon and Noreen can now sit on a balcony in the treetops with birds on the window sill and badgers and rabbits running underneath looking up at the woods and hills.”

The episode of Grand Designs featuring Millar + Howard Workshop's Dursley Tree House was aired on Channel 4 on Wednesday, September 21.

Those who missed it can watch it on catchup internet streaming service 4oD.