Westergate £560,000

Believed to date back to the 1500s, this charming detached cottage has many original features and incorporates the once additional barn. At one time a village shop and a restaurant, the house now boasts four bedrooms, two reception rooms and a conservatory, while outside there is a deceptively spacious garden, as well as parking and a detached garage.
The Story
Sitting in one of the upstairs bedrooms, looking up at the beams, Annie admires the grain and the twist of the wood.
It is just this unusual charm that she and her husband Peter love – and that enticed them to buy the landowner’s farmhouse back in 1987.
It’s a large period house with oodles of character, she said.
What makes it all the more special, is that Annie once visited the building years before.
It is quite bizarre, but when I was about 17, a boyfriend took me to the restaurant as a special birthday treat. I didn’t know then that I would end up living here, she said.
CHARMING FEATURES
Records first refer to The White House in 1547 and show that right up to the 20th Century the house was only owned by three different families. More recently it was once used as a village shop and for three years, the property was run as a restaurant.
Annie and her husband Peter bought the property in 1987 and have carefully restored it enhancing the many original features it boasts. They were charmed by its character, including inglenook fireplaces, original beams, hinges on the doors and flagstone flooring.
I am sitting in one of the upstairs bedrooms, which I use as an office, and you can see the beam holding up the wall has all the knots of the original tree trunk, said Annie. It is things like this, which make the house so interesting.
SYMMETRY RESTORED
When they first moved in, the couple undertook works including damp proofing and some re-roofing as well as decorating throughout. They also built on a garden room and put in an additional shower room.
Actually, the first thing we did was to remove the bow window at the front of the house, which had been installed when it was used as a shop. We wanted to get back the original symmetry of the house and it now looks very attractive, she said.
Until the 1920s, the roof was thatched but then it was tiled and the outside walls
were raised.
You can still see the original roof trusses in the roof, explained Annie. But it is quite unusual for a period house to have ceilings as high as the ones we have upstairs, which make the rooms up there seem even more spacious.
WARM HEART
The bright red, gas Aga provides plenty of warmth and heat in the kitchen, which is really at the heart of the home. The kitchen and the master bedroom above, once formed the old barn attached to the house.
I love the kitchen because it has always been the centre of this house, she said. When the children were young they used to sit at the kitchen table doing their homework, while I was cooking.
There is plenty of space for the family to spread out in, from the large and comfortable drawing room, featuring a splendid inglenook fireplace, to the separate dining room, where there is another open fireplace, and the sun-filled garden room.
The space in both the house and garden makes this a perfect family home, said Annie. When the children were little, they loved playing hide and seek here.
RECEPTION ROOM
The owners put all the space to good use when they held their wedding reception for 100 guests at the house. We have had a lot of parties here over the years and we did, in fact, hold our wedding reception in the house, she said. It is also a very pretty house at Christmas time when we tend to have had a lot of large family gatherings.
The beautiful landscaped gardens offer the perfect setting on sunny days and there are lots of lovely walks around the area.
You can literally be walking across fields within three minutes of the house, she said. In fact, the house is perfectly located for so many things, whether it be the countryside of the South Downs or Bognor Regis beach, there is so much to see and do around here.
She added: It has been a fantastic family home and I shall be leaving it with lots of fond memories.
Accommodation
Ground Floor
The pretty external elevations of this home exude a charming appeal that is reflected in the character-filled rooms. The current owners tend to use the side entrance mainly, which was created when the adjoining barn was incorporated into the main house. Being situated on the driveway which leads to the detached garage, this is the most practical access leading to the original cottage and the kitchen in the previous barn. The drawing room is L-shaped and sits to the front of the cottage. You immediately notice the exposed beamed ceiling and the stunning Inglenook fireplace with its concealed lighting which is a real feature of this room. The floor is of Sussex ‘winkle stone’ and to the south side of this room there is a small conservatory. On the reverse of the central chimney stack is another fireplace, facing into the dining room and housing a cast iron wood-burning stove. The dining room also features the ‘winkle stone’ floor and an abundance of beams across the ceiling. The kitchen/breakfast room is at the rear of the cottage in the original barn and boasts a shaker-style range of cabinets and a feature Aga housed within the chimney breast, complimented by a modern integrated oven and hob. Additionally on the ground floor there is a useful pantry/storage room under the stairs, a cloakroom and an inner hallway, created from the space between the original cottage and barn, with stairs that rise to the first floor.
First Floor
The light master bedroom has windows to both side elevations and is accessed through a dressing area with walk-in wardrobe. Adjacent to this is a modern shower room which, like the landing, features the exposed original beams of the cottage roof. The main landing is divided into two sections by the central staircase and has reduced head room in places due to the exposed cottage timbers. Bedrooms two and four are located with the family bathroom at one end, while bedroom three is at the other end with a walk-in storage area.
Setting the Scene
The White House is set back from the road and surrounded by pretty gardens with an ornamental pond.
I engaged the services of a landscape gardener when we first moved in so while the front garden is quite formal looking the back is much softer, said Annie.
The back garden flows into a series of areas, which are divided naturally by plants and bushes to give more interest. There is also a concealed section of the garden to the side of the house, which has been used as a vegetable patch.
There are plenty of places to sit out, including three terraces, one of which is just outside the back door.
The terraces all benefit from the sun at different times of the day, so there is a choice depending on if you want sun or shade, she added.
The driveway leads to the detached garage set at the rear of the cottage.
Within Easy Reach
Approximately five to six miles west along the coast is the cathedral city of Chichester which offers comprehensive shopping facilities and many fashionable cafes, bars and restaurants catering for most peoples’ tastes. Chichester is home to the renowned ‘Festival Theatre’ and has a mainline station to London Victoria. Goodwood, with its racecourse, is a short distance to the north of Chichester and is home to the famous event days including the ‘Festival of Speed’ and ‘Goodwood Revival’ for motor racing enthusiasts. The A27 gives access across the south coast to destinations like Brighton, Portsmouth and Southampton which has a growing airport for the international traveller. Gatwick Airport takes about an hour to reach by car.
The National Trust woods at Slindon are just a 10-minute drive away, as is Bognor Regis. Arundel Castle, where there is a wildfowl trust and ancient woodland, is only 15 minutes’ drive away.
DIRECTIONS:
On the A27 between Chichester and Arundel at the Fontwell Park roundabout take the A29 towards Bognor Regis. At the next roundabout continue along the A29 taking the second exit to Nyton Road and continue onto Westergate Street. The White House will be found on the left hand side a short distance past the Mace convenience stores on your right.
For those with satellite navigation the post code for the property is PO20 3QY.
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