If you can put doors on the whole back area and deck or pave out to a functional size for entertaining - be sure to have as close to same height as inside and the whole width of the house if possible. You could do the pergola which looks gorgeous and makes a cozy feel. On top of the pergola you may be able to do a weatherproof retractable awning if you do not want a permanent covered area. That would make a whole area for indoor outdoor entertaining in all types of weather. You can still have a step down area to grass and plants at the rear. Travetine is great and easy to hose down. You do not have to concrete them down use pavers on a good road base. You would have to speak to the experts about how to get the right height - also be sure to have a slight fall away from the house.

Sorry to continue....the plan by Louise on the 20/01/2017.... But the laundry ( with internal access or through cloak room) and ensuite to the rear of the garage the master behind...... Then a Wir separating the master form the living or a bathroom...... The a fireplace if required against the western wall central in the house.... The entrance and small cloak room for the winter woollies against the garage and the other three beds at the front RHS with bath near.... The lounge/ kitchen/ dining in a similar layout but with minimal a walls blocking the view from the entry to the living/kitchen .... I like at lease a small wall dividing the living and lounge for the teenagers also.... If I get an chance I will sketch something up. Good luck this the paperwork... Plans are the fun part.

" It is sooo tricky to get the balance right between modern and sympathetic to 70's." 100%, and if this stuff was easy, us Pro's wouldn't have a job ;) It's always ALL about balance, and when it comes to questions of what to do to existing dwellings it's probably just as much about what you don't do. You need to get the scaling , articulation and detail right. You don't want to do something that looks tacked on and incongruent with the existing. If you are extending a deck to the side on an upper level you'll need to take into consideration potential overlooking to neighbouring private space. We're currently working on a similar upper level deck extension to an existing 70's dwelling, and what we've done is use a combination of different balustrade materials (charcoal random depth timber battening & frameless glass) to simultaneously control the overlooking, focus the outlook, and achieve a balanced complimentary design. It depends on what the deck is for, is it for private use or are you trying to gain access to a view? These things will all influence the design. Budget of course will also influence what you do. The design solution ultimately should begin with responding to the function first and foremost, and then what it actually looks like will (should) naturally spring from this in conjunction with a sensitive response in balance with the existing & with consideration of your budget constraint Good luck! PD www.pauldistefanodesign.com

I really love the work of Ross Chapin, he has really influenced my approach to homes in general! He is a US (i think) based architect who champions small homes and has a concept called a pocket home. I've read a lot of his articles and he likes homes that are homey and cottagey and small neighbourhoods with common parklands and great greenspace access. One feature of his homes is they are typically 1-2 bedroom a thing he often does is replace what would in other homes a whole room with a nook. So for example, a hallway might be extra wide but have a nook for an office that could be closed off with a sliding door into a spare room. Or an attic space that can sleep grandkids, dining nooks off the kitchen so entertaining is possible, like an oversized bay window. Decent living spaces. His designs are worth a look at to get some ideas. https://rosschapin.com/plans/small-houses/ I've also stayed at a newly built unit for an elderly person. There was this large foyer space at the entrance with an extra wide door that was level with the paving, no lip at the entrance. It was designed so ambulance access would be easy in an emergency. The large foyer had cupboards with a laundry and storage, and then there was a bathroom directly across, again for easy emergency access. There was a phone in the bathroom too in case of falls. The whole area was tiled from door to bathroom for easy maintenance and access. The kitchen was simply run across one wall of an open plan dining and lounge area with like a corridor of tiling to designate it as separate. You can use flooring changes to create different spaces. It there were no awkward pokey spaces and it was the easiest place I have ever stayed for cleaning and organising. There is a universal access guideline, its worth checking things like bench heights etc... https://www.architecture.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Universal-Access-Policy.pdf