With global uncertainty still clouding the outlook for the country house market in 2025, leading agents expect demand to remain strongest in established local hotspots. That said, good houses in spectacular settings will continue to find buyers, whatever their location — and that leads us to the sale of Sandridge Park, which is on the market with Knight Frank for £6 million.
This imposing house is set in some 27 acres of gardens, parkland and woodland, 2½ miles from Melksham, a Wiltshire town just south of Chippenham, and an easy drive to the east from Bath.
The pristine 12,389sq ft Georgian-style house, which is unlisted, was built on Sandridge Hill between 1858 and 1860 by Ralph Ludlow Lopes, a successful barrister who was the High Sheriff of Wiltshire in 1869. According to British History Online, Lopes’s grand new house replaced Lord Audley’s Sandridge Hill House, which previously stood on the site.
In the mid 1970s, the Lopes family decided to sell Sandridge Park, which stands in a sheltered south-facing spot on high ground with views towards the Vale of Pewsey, Salisbury Plain and the Mendip Hills. It was bought by Andrew Hoogeweegen, a former managing director of Heineken UK, who established the property as a venue for weddings, private parties and conferences.
In 2019, Sandridge Park was acquired by the present vendor, who embarked on an extensive refurbishment that included the addition of a new porch and entrance hall and saw Sandridge Park revert to its original status as a grand family home. And 'grand' really is the word: the furnishings, fittings and finish are all impeccable; this is a sort of Georgian fantasy mansion made real.
Immaculately presented throughout, the main house offers no fewer than seven impressive ground-floor reception rooms — reception hall, entrance hall, drawing room, dining room, library, sitting room and study — plus a vast bespoke kitchen and various utilities.
The first floor houses a luxurious principal bedroom suite and seven further double bedrooms, with bathrooms or shower rooms en suite.
Two further bright and spacious double bedrooms, both equipped with en-suite shower rooms, are located on the second floor. With fast-moving modern living in mind, the house has been re-wired with cat 6 cabling to each room run by a 50+ port matrix system. We're not even going to pretend to know what that means, but it's probably a really good thing, or the agents wouldn't have mentioned it.
Excellent secondary accommodation includes The Apartment, a two-bedroom annexe, and The Lodge, a self-contained, two-bedroom cottage.
Outbuildings include a workshop, gym and stores, and a new, four-bay garage with electric sectional doors, each bay pre-wired with charging stations for electric vehicles.
Sandridge Park is for sale at £6 million — see more details and pictures.
'An inspirational renaissance': The house and gardens of Sandridge Park
A historic house has been saved from ruin by sympathetic owners, who have mixed modern planting with tradition to create
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
-
Graham Norton's elegant East London home hits the market, and it's just as wonderful as you would expectThe four-bedroom home in Wapping should be studied for how well it uses two separate spaces to create a home of immense character and utility.
-
Sign of the times: In the age of the selfie, what’s happening to the humble autograph?When Ringo Starr announced that he was no longer going to sign anything, he kickstarted a celebrity movement that coincided with the advent of the camera phone and selfie. Rob Crossan asks whether, in today’s world, the selfie holds more clout than an autograph?
-
Graham Norton's elegant East London home hits the market, and it's just as wonderful as you would expect
The four-bedroom home in Wapping should be studied for how well it uses two separate spaces to create a home of immense character and utility.
-
About time: The fastest and slowest moving housing markets revealedNew research by Zoopla has shown where it's easy to sell and where it will take quite a while to find a buyer.
-
A wisteria clad hall built by one of the founders of the Bank of EnglandCome for the history of Old Hall. Stay for the interesting interiors.
-
A gorgeous Scottish cottage with contemporary interiors on the bonny banks of the River TayCarnliath on the edge of Strathtay is a delightful family home set in sensational scenery.
-
Six rural properties with space, charm and endless views, as seen in Country LifeWe take a look at some of the best houses to come to the market via Country Life in the past week.
-
380 acres and 90 bedrooms on the £25m private island being sold by one of Britain's top music producersStormzy, Rihanna and the Rolling Stones are just a part of the story at Osea Island, a dot on the map in the seas off Essex.
-
A home cinema, tasteful interiors and 65 acres of private parkland hidden in an unassuming lodge in KentNorth Lodge near Tonbridge may seem relatively simple, but there is a lot more than what meets the eye.
-
A rare opportunity to own a family home on Vanbrugh Terrace, one of London's finest streetsThis six-bedroom Victorian home sits right on the start line of the London Marathon, with easy access to Blackheath and Greenwich Park.
