The apartment is located in North London in an area called Belsize Park.

The client is a young professional who works and has been studying in London.

The core concept for the apartment is the creation of a sleeping pod within a warm, light-filled, open-plan space.

My name is John Proctor.

I'm Director of Proctor & Shaw Architects.

We're an architecture and design studio based in London.

The location is very cosmopolitan.

There's really nice green spaces nearby and the area is dotted with cafes, pubs and restaurants.

The apartment is on the first floor of a Victorian building on a lovely tree-lined street.

It was built in the late 19th century as a handsome townhome and it was since being converted, we think in the 1970s, into four smaller residential units.

It was important that the flat catered for work as well as living and had adequate social spaces for what is still a small apartment.

One of the core parts of the brief that the client asked us to interpret was this term Boho Japanese.

That means clean lines, simple structure, flexibility in the design, whilst styling the space towards a younger, more modern urban generation.

When I first visited the apartment, there was a very awkward layout.

It was divided into cellular rooms.

The bedroom occupied the nice room with the bay window.

The kitchen was at the back and it was really dark.

The flat was completely ripped out back to bare brick.

By taking all the walls down, the main social space was able to inhabit the lovely bay window, so there's fantastic light sort of pouring in.

We felt that there was an opportunity to exploit the 3.4 metres that we have here.

So a key concept in the design was the sleeping pod and underneath that, we have placed a lot of key storage elements.

As soon as you enter the apartment, you've got views through the bay window to the lovely tree that's outside the front of the building.

The living room is very simply decorated and furnished.

We didn't want to have to be forced into having a lot of fixed furniture which defined how someone might like to live in the space.

There is some built-in cabinetry and some nice elegant shelving.

Birch ply was chosen in conjunction with the predominant material of the space, which is a clay works plaster.

The natural patina brings a warmth to the home.

The floor finish is lino, it's by a company called Forbo.

There's one main space and therefore we needed one floor finish which unifies all of those spaces.

As a core part of our intentions for the project, which was deliver a luxurious level of living, the kitchen is quite large for the size of the apartment.

There is integrated washer dryer, it's got all of the cooking and storage facilities that you need, all integrated into simple birch plywood finished cabinetry.

The kitchen countertop is quartzite, which is extremely durable and very easy to maintain.

The dining area occupies the middle of the plan between the living room and the kitchen.

We felt that the dining offer had to be large and luxurious, it's a normal size dining table.

We chose a floss string-like pendant so that it kind of expressed the height of the space.

The sleeping pod is enclosed with a series of polycarbonate screens which are framed in a nice thin aluminium.

It was influenced by Japanese shoji screens, which does define space but it's also openable in a very flexible way.

The sliding door is open to reveal a space-saving staircase.

It's called an alternative tread staircase so that each tread is actually two steps high.

And when you're at the top of the stairs you're on a small landing which gives you simple access into the king-size bed.

There's also some small nooks, there's a nice lamp, there's a place to put your bedside book.

What's lovely about the system of screens is that the bed area can be very private and very cocoon-like, but when it's open you do have views from the bed space out onto the street.

At night with the screens closed and the lights on it is a lantern which creates a really lovely warm glow, nice sort of cosy feel for the rest of the apartment to enjoy.

Underneath the king-size bed in the sleeping pod is a walk-in wardrobe.

It's also used as a spill utility space.

There is actually a second freezer concealed in there behind the birch ply cabinet door.

The bathroom occupies the same location as the original bathroom.

The bathroom has a walk-in shower, there is no shower tray, we use the micro-cement concrete.

There's a floor-to-ceiling shower screen in glass.

The sanitary ware is finished in stainless steel.

We use the space which is usually wasted above the cistern to the toilet.

We designed a custom built-in cabinetry and it's finished in the same micro-cement finish as the rest of the wall, so it's very discreet in the space.

Again we exploited the height of the space.

We put a structural deck on the top of the bathroom in order to create a loft style storage area.

It's also where some of the main services are kept.

As a practice we're interested in research and exploring what micro-living means.

In the UK that's particularly pertinent because we do have a housing crisis.

We would like to think that this project starts a conversation about how space might be reviewed or understood in a qualitative way.

Even though this apartment is small, the quality of the architecture and the experience of living here is extremely high.

The UK has a huge amount of The answer may not necessarily lie and shouldn't lie in just knocking these neighbourhoods down and building taller buildings.

I think there are other avenues which could be explored.

This episode of Never Too Small is sponsored by Audible.

Audible is perfect for someone like me who has a busy lifestyle but still want to find time to read.

I have been an avid Audible user for several years and the app has been a great tool for me to use when I'm travelling for filming or during my lunch break.

What I like about Audible is that not only can I access recently published titles but with Audible Plus I can listen to Audible originals, audiobooks and podcasts and exclusive series such as guided meditation or fitness which is really cool.

One of my favourite audiobooks has to be The Design of Everyday Things by Dawn Norman which shows how good yet usable design is possible and how it can influence consumer behaviour and satisfaction.

It is truly an inspiring title.

Right now, for a limited time, save 60% on your first three months of Audible.

That's only $5.95 a month.

Give yourself the gift of listening.

For more, go to audible.com slash never too small or text never too small to 500500.