Winning a home consultation with Dermot Bannon might sound like something straight out of a TV show, but for four lucky homeowners across Ireland, that dream has become a reality. Our Win a Home Consultation competition was designed to inspire home owners to reimagine their homes and discover new possibilities for their living spaces and to help people rethink how their homes work, not just for today, but for the future. 

Through this campaign, Dermot shares his expert insight on how small changes can make a big impact, from transforming layouts and improving comfort to future-proofing homes and making them more sustainable. With sustainability at the heart of the campaign, Dermot explored ways each home can become more efficient and comfortable. From smarter heating solutions to thoughtful upgrades, the consultations are an exciting opportunity to gain expert advice on how to future-proof homes and take meaningful steps toward a more sustainable way of living.  

People from across the nation shared their ideas, inspiration and reasons why they wanted to improve their homes. From making their spaces more energy efficient, enhancing comfort and warmth, and rethinking layouts that no longer worked for their families. We have loved hearing your ideas and the reasons behind the changes our entries hope to make.

Keeping the Charm, Losing the Chill 

Alan and Yinxi live in a stunning Victorian home built in the 1880s, full of character and  a few quirks. This house wears its age proudly, with high ceilings, beautiful original details, and an impressive ability to let in every possible draught. While the charm and history are part of what makes it so special, Dermot helped the couple explore a real opportunity to make the home warmer, more comfortable, and ready for the future. 

During the consultation, Dermot explored ways to blend high-spec energy efficiency with the home’s existing character. Rather than stripping back the features that give the house its identity, the focus was on thoughtful upgrades that improve comfort and sustainability while respecting the building’s heritage. Dermot went into the consultation with the goal of fighting the “19th Century Chill” with thoughtful solutions to bring the home into the modern day, but not disturbing the 150 year old homes stunning architecture.  

Another aim of Alan’s was to expand the kitchen with a modest extension. Dermot wanted to create a space that works better for modern family life while maintaining the flow and feel of the original home. By opening the kitchen outwards, the house can better connect with the garden and provide the extra room the family needs, allowing the home to adapt to them, rather than the other way around. 

When Sinead first bought her Kildare home, it represented independence. Sinead stated it was small, manageable, and completely her own. Over time, life grew in the best possible ways. She met her husband, they married, and together they began building a family. Like many family homes, the house gradually took on new roles. But for this family, it became far more than a place to live. One of the twins was born with severe congenital heart defects, and a result, Sinead’s house has become a recovery space, therapy room, medical store, safe haven, and sometimes simply a place to catch their breath. However, the house itself is no longer keeping pace with family life. 

Sinead asked Dermot to look at ways to make the ground floor work for their family, as it is becoming increasingly difficult to navigate. The kitchen is compact, and at times cooking dinner can feel like “a contact sport”, and the current layout presents challenges as their son’s mobility and balance needs evolve. 

Dermot explored how the ground floor could be reimagined to better support the family’s day-to-day life. His vision focused on creating a more seamless flow between spaces used for play, rest, and recovery, helping to transform the house back into a true family home. Dermot explored options for opening up the layout to create wider, clearer pathways and improving circulation throughout the ground floor.  

The goal isn’t a grand redesign. Instead, it’s thoughtful, practical design, a home that allows for safe movement, greater independence, and room to breathe. 

For this family, the house already holds countless memories: hospital discharge days, first steps, setbacks, resilience, and enormous love. With the right design vision, it has the potential to become a home that truly supports the life happening inside it. 

Through ideas that prioritise accessibility, comfort, and smart use of space, the consultation demonstrated how a home can evolve alongside the people who live in it, helping this house work just as hard as the family who call it home. 

Tara and her young family live in a beautiful terraced house in the historic CIE Works estate, originally built by the Great Southern & Western Railway in 1847. The house is full of charm and heritage, with a stunning front facing garden and a strong sense of community that the family feel incredibly lucky to be a part of.  

While the house is rich in character, it is also compact, a traditional two-up, two-down layout that can feel tight for a growing family. With hopes of staying in this home forever,, Tara asked Dermot to help make the most of the space they have.  

One of the most loved features of the home is its fireplaces. Every room has one, and they serve as beautiful centrepieces that connect the house to its history. The family are well acquainted with cosy evenings spent by a roaring fire with WillowWarm keeping them toastie. Preserving these features was a key priority when thinking about any potential changes to the home. 

During the consultation, Dermot explored how the house could evolve to better support family life while still respecting its historic character. Rather than large-scale alterations, his suggestions focused on clever spatial configurations that would make the most of the compact footprint. Dermot focused on bold moves such as high windows and thoughtful natural light placement to make rooms feel larger and more open without significantly increasing the building’s footprint. This approach would help brighten the home while maintaining the warmth and intimacy that make it special. A small expansion would help Tara stay rooted in her community, and be comfortable knowing her family will be able to grow up in this home, without out growing it.  

All Tara asked was to keep the character, the fireplaces, and the sense of community that make their house so special, and Dermot found creative ways to make the space work for the life they hope to build there. 

Aghna and her husband’s home on Leinster Avenue is full of personality, charm and Irish influenced decor. The couple bought their terraced home in 2023 and quickly fell in love with it. The previous owner had carried out renovations in 2004, leaving the house in good condition and giving the couple a great starting point. After getting married last year, however, they began thinking about how to future-proof the home for the years ahead. 

One of the biggest challenges they face is temperature. In winter, the house can feel particularly cold, to the point where the electric blanket often ends up doing overtime. Heating the entire house has proven difficult, so the couple usually rely on the fire to warm the sitting room, where they spend most of their time. 

Ironically, the coldest part of the house is also the newest. Two extensions sit at the back of the property: an older extension that houses the kitchen and bathroom above, and a newer addition built in 2004. In winter, stepping into this space can feel almost like stepping outside, while in summer it swings to the opposite extreme and becomes overly warm. The layout also presents challenges and despite having additional space at the back, the couple still find themselves living almost entirely in the sitting room. 

During the consultation, Dermot explored how they could open the house to the sun and transform the house by rethinking the fragmented layout created by the two separate extensions. His suggestion was to reconfigure the spaces into a single, open plan living area that would better connect the kitchen, dining, and everyday living zones. 

By making better use of the south facing aspect, the design could dramatically improve both light and warmth throughout the space. Relocating the workspace would also allow the upstairs rooms to adapt as the family grows. 

Through these changes, Dermot’s vision was to turn what is currently a cold, disjointed layout into a cohesive and welcoming home where each room has a clear purpose and the entire space feels warm, connected, and ready for the future.