Yeoford, Crediton, Devon Guide price £1,900,000

Entrance hall, drawing room, dining room, study, playroom, breakfast room, kitchen, cloakroom, principal bedroom/bathroom suite, 4 further bedrooms & shower room. Extensive range of traditional barns and outbuildings around a courtyard. Modern farmbuilding. Landscaped gardens & grounds with lake and pond, including the Troney river. Mature orchards. Pastureland. About 35.5 acres.

Lot 1: About 35.5 acres – Guide price: £1,900,000
Lot 2: About 71.5 acres – UNDER OFFER
LOCATION

Great Heale is situated in the heart of the beautiful, unspoilt, rolling countryside of mid Devon, overlooking the Troney Valley, to the south west of Crediton. The nearest village is Yeoford, about 2 miles away, which has a shop, pub, church and primary school. A few miles to the south is the Dartmoor National Park, renowned for its spectacular scenery and providing many opportunities for walking, riding and fishing. Crediton provides a full selection of local amenities including shops and secondary education. In Okehampton, to the west, there is a Waitrose store. In Exeter there are a good selection of private schools.

COMMUNICATIONS

In Yeoford there is a railway station with trains to Exeter, from where there are mainline connections to London. There is quick access to the south on to the A30 dual carriageway, leading west to Cornwall and east to Exeter, where there is access on to the M5 motorway and an international airport. 

- Crediton 5 miles
- Exeter 13½ miles
- A30 4½ miles
(distances approximate)

HISTORY

The listing document states “Great Heale is a fine example of an early 17th century house of rich yeoman or lesser gentry status. For Devon it is unusual, being a single period house although the medieval layout may suggest an early 17th century rebuild of an earlier house.” For 200 years the farm was let by the Sillifant family, who owned the Combe Estate, to the Stoneman family. In 1919 much of the estate was sold and the Stonemans bought Great Heale and owned it up until 1987. The farm has been meticulously and lovingly restored since then with great care taken to retain the period character, charm and many notable features. The current owners have continued that restoration, renovation and improvement programme since they bought the property in 1999.

THE PROPERTY  

- Picturesque, thatched Devon farmhouse of great character and charm and with notable period features.
- Features including exposed beams and timbers, timber mullioned leaded light windows, elm boarded floors, cob internal cross walls.
- Listed as being of architectural or historical interest Grate II*.
- Thoroughly renovated, restored and improved by the current owners.
- Situated in a stunningly peaceful and private, rural setting in the heart of the mid Devon countryside at the end of a long, private entrance drive and facing south overlooking the River Troney Valley.
- Delightful landscaped gardens and grounds around the house incorporating a lake and ponds and River Troney.
- Extensive range of traditional cob barns and outbuildings around a part cobbled courtyard beside the house.
- House and buildings entirely ring fenced by its own pastureland and orchards.
- Easy access to A30, Exeter, M5 etc.

From the driveway and parking areas, steps rise to a cobbled path to the gabled, open porch with cobbled floor and built in wooden bench seats. The oak panelled front door leads to

Ground floor

Entrance hall quarry tiled floor, exposed ceiling joists and timbers, antique oak doors and staircase. 
Drawing room (S) a beautiful room with southerly views across the farm and surrounding countryside and many original period features, inglenook fireplace with wooden beam with names carved dating back to the 18th century, oak floor, ornate antique carved panelling (dated to 1610 by English Heritage) and with fitted bench seat below, built-in cupboard, timber mullioned windows with shutters and built-in window seats, exposed carved beams and ceiling joists, fitted Bang & Olufsen TV behind ornate carved shutters, door to
Dining room (S) another room of great character with southerly views across the valley, granite flagged floor, stone fireplace with log burner and beam over, timber mullioned window with built-in window seat, exposed beams and ceiling joists. From the drawing room, a door leads to the staircase lobby with staircase rising and doors to
Cloakroom boarded floor, wash basin, WC, heated towel rail. 
Breakfast room (N) slate flagged floor, oak cupboards and dresser with granite work tops, French doors to York flagstone terrace and gardens, gas fired Aga, fitted Bang & Olufsen TV, underfloor heating, doorway to
Kitchen (N) slate flagged floor, extensive range of oak cupboards with granite work tops, double butler’s sink and drainer, Lacanche oven with five ring gas hob, electric oven, Miele micowave/convection oven, 2 Miele dish washers, dryer and washing machine, fridges and freezers including wine coolers, downlighting, part glazed panelled roof with electric blinds, underfloor heating, fitted Bang & Olufsen TV, stable type door to terrace and gardens and further back door to yard.  From the entrance hall a door leads to
Playroom (S) quarry tiled floor, fitted shelving, timber mullioned window with shutters, exposed ceiling joists, door to
Study (S) beautiful southerly views across the valley, timber mullioned windows, fitted bookshelves, exposed beam.  From the inner staircase lobby off the drawing room and kitchen the rear newel elm staircase rises to

First Floor
Landing (N&E) exposed timbers, built-in airing cupboard with ornate carved panelled doors, timber mullioned windows (one with shutters), box store above staircase, doors to
Principal suite Bedroom 1 (S&E) a beautiful room with high ceiling and southerly views across the valley, fireplace incorporating woodburner with beam above, timber mullioned windows, exposed roof timbers, 2 built-in oak wardrobe cupboards. 
Bathroom limestone tiled floor with underfloor heating, freestanding bath beside the window with stunning views over the gardens, lake and valley, and beyond to Dartmoor.  Large shower cubicle, twin circular stone wash basins with cupboards below, WC, heated towel rails. 
Dressing room/bedroom 2 (S) built-in hanging cupboards and further shelved cupboard, timber mullioned window, door to landing, access to insulated and boarded loft.  From the rear landing steps lead down to an inner landing area with door to
Bedroom 3 (S) exposed timbers, timber mullioned window. From the inner landing an oak staircase rises to
Bedroom 4 (S&W) exposed rafters and roof timbers, built-in hanging cupboard with ornate carved panel door, timber mullioned windows.  From the entrance hall, the main staircase rises to Main landing elm  boarded floor, timber mullioned window, doors to Shower room shower cubicle, wash basin, WC, heated towel rail. 
Bedroom 5 (S&W) former cider house with timber mullioned window overlooking the farm and valley, exposed roof timbers.
 
The Outbuildings
Negotiations are underway to acquire planning permission on the courtyard of barns mentioned below, and architects drawings are available on request.
 
Doors from both the courtyard and the kitchen/breakfast room lead to a small enclosed rear yard incorporating boiler house built of timber beneath a tiled roof including the oil fired boiler and hot water tank and pig styes built of stone and timber beneath a tiled roof.
 
To the west of the house is a delightful range of traditional period barns built of cob and mostly rendered, clustered around a part cobbled courtyard and comprising stables, 10.06m x 6.10m (33’ x 20’) internally, with some of the original fittings and loft above.  Cider barn, 10.97m x 6.10m (36’ x 20’) internally, including the original horse driven apple crusher with loft and cider press above.  Threshing barn, 12.50m x 5.18m (41’ x 17’) internally.  The Roundhouse, being timber framed and corrugated iron clad incorporating a further horse engine.  The open fronted shippen, 15.24m x 3.81m (50’ x 12’6”), with fitted mangers, hay racks and loft above. 
Garage, 6.93m x 3.51m (22’9” x 11’6”), with concrete floor, lighting connected and separate WC with wash basin.
 
From the courtyard and barns a covered gateway leads through to a gravel and grass yard with open fronted cart shed, 10.36m x 5.49m (34’ x 18’), being timber framed with granite stanchions and corrugated iron roof and cladding.
 
Situated some distance along a track to the east of the house and buildings is the 6 bay open fronted timber framed covered yard, 27.44m x 8.84m (90’ x 29’), with space board cladding, corrugated roof, concrete yard and electricity and water
connected.

The Gardens
From the lane the long tarmac entrance drive leads over a stone bridge across the river and up through the pastureland/ parkland and around, via a cattle grid between stone pillars, with wiring in place for electric security gates, to extensive parking and turning areas, from where high double oak gates open to the outbuildings courtyard.  A gate and stone steps, with step lighting, rise through stone retaining walls topped by clipped yew hedges to cobbled terrace areas and the entrance porch.  The house is surrounded by landscaped, lawned gardens fringed by plant and shrub borders and including ornamental trees and a summerhouse.  From the gardens there are stunning views across the surrounding countryside and to Dartmoor.  Doors from the kitchen and breakfast room open to broad flagstone terrace areas leading around to a detached garden room/conservatory and there is lighting around the gardens.
 
To the north of the house a fence separates the gardens from a grassed bank area with further ornamental trees. To the south of the house and barns are further extensive landscaped mown areas interspersed with ornamental trees.  Adjoining the wall of the courtyard is a filtered ornamental Koi pond with fountain and below the house, within this area, are a lake and pond, both fringed by water loving plants and stocked with specimen carp and tench.  Again, from these areas, there is a beautiful outlook across the unspoilt, partly wooded valley.  The whole garden and grounds area is entirely surrounded by dog and vermin proof fencing.
 
The Land
The land entirely surrounds the house and buildings and consists mostly of pastureland with essentially southerly aspect divided by traditional Devon banks and hedges and sloping gently down to the River Troney, which forms the south east boundary and also incorporates two large orchards (one behind the barns and outbuildings and one beside the drive).  There is water connected to new modern troughs around the farm.
 
Property Information
Services:  Mains electricity.  Private water and drainage.  Oil fired heating.  Gas fired Aga.  Underfloor heating in the kitchen and principal bathroom.  Satellite broadband.  Bang & Olufsen TV system fitted.
Local Authorities:  Mid Devon District Council, Phoenix House, Phoenix Lane, Tiverton EX16 6PP.  Tel. 01884 255255.
Devon County Council, County Hall, Topsham Road, Exeter EX2 4QD. Tel. 01392 382000.
Single Farm Payment:  The land is registered under the Single Farm Payment scheme.  Further details on request.
Contents, fixtures and fittings:  All items usually known as tenants fixtures and
fittings whether mentioned or not in these particulars are excluded from the sale.
Viewing:  By appointment with Jackson-Stops & Staff’s Exeter office: 01392 214222.
For Sale by Private Treaty with Vacant Possession Upon Completion.