A Piddle Valley paradise for sale, with eight acres, and a pool that'll mean you can't wait for winter to end
Arabella Youens looks at the wonderful High Waterston Farm, in Dorset’s beautiful Piddle Valley, about four miles from Dorchester.
Property sales in the West Country last year were 'a bit of a damp squib', according to one agent — but 2026 has got off to a fast start. Against that backdrop the agents at Blue Book are hopeful that they will soon find a new owner for Higher Waterston Farm, which is for sale at £3.75 million.
This beautiful Georgian house — with a swimming pool and tennis court — is set in unspoilt countryside in Dorset’s Piddle Valley, in the small, rural hamlet of Higher Waterston. It's a spot that sits within the rolling Dorset Downs, two miles from the village of Puddletown, which has a village shop, post office, surgery and pub.
Dating predominantly from the 1790s and extended in the 1920s, the eight-bedroom house, which is unlisted, has been a happy family home for the past 30 years. During that time, the owners have undertaken an extensive renovation and a full replumb, presenting it to the market in move-in condition.
The gardens at High Waterston Farm are a real highlight, and divided into discrete areas that include lawns, terraces, a kitchen garden, formal garden and more. There are also paddocks, stables and mature woodland within the eight acres.
There's more than just a house included in the property. Arranged around a traditional brick-and-flint courtyard set apart from the main house, are five income-generating units, all let on assured shorthold tenancies — meaning that the property qualifies for the mixed-use lower rate of stamp duty. ‘They are very separate and provide a good income that would cover the running costs of the main house,’ says the agent, Lindsay Cuthill.
Higher Waterston Farm was actually launched onto the market last summer, but has yet to find a buyer. Cuthill is optimistic that it won't be long now, though: ‘There’s a sense that things have changed,' he says.
'We’ve just organised a third viewing this month for a prospective buyer, something that I don’t think happened in the last half of 2025 — perhaps the South-West is now waking up.’
Cuthill's experience echoes that of others — that last year was a struggle. ‘The West Country is always quick to respond to downturns and slow to recover. That’s particularly true in this increasingly polarised country market where there is the Cotswolds, which gets all the focus, and then everywhere else.’
Higher Waterston Farm is on the market for £3.75m — see more details.
