With much of the activity at the upper end of the Cotswolds country-house market currently taking place behind closed doors, the open-market sale of The Old Rectory at Duntisbourne Abbots, at a guide price of £4.95m through the Cirencester office of Strutt & Parker, will hopefully encourage more vendors to break cover.
The Duntisbourne valley, between Cirencester and Cheltenham, is one of the prettiest and most unspoilt parts of the Cotswolds, characterised by charming small villages of period houses and cottages. Duntisbourne Abbots is the largest of these villages, located seven miles from Cirencester and 12 miles from Cheltenham, and it's a settlement that originally belonged to St Peter’s Abbey, Gloucester.
For 56 years, from 1945 to 2001, when it was acquired by its present owners, the imposing former rectory was a youth hostel, which probably explains why, apart from its entrance gates, the classic Georgian building is unlisted. It's hard to believe that this magnificent house would once have been populated by scouts and students traipsing through the hallways carrying backpacks and sleeping bags on their way to dormitories full of bunk-beds.
During their tenure, the owners transformed the substantial, 8,224sq ft main house — now the principal house in the village — from a wreck into ‘a proper family country home with decent-sized reception rooms, laying down the gardens and buying in extra land to create an idyllic Cotswold setting of some 22 acres in all,’ selling agent Luke Morgan explains.
The main house offers accommodation on three floors, including six fine reception rooms, eight principal bedrooms with five bathrooms, a top-floor playroom and kitchen, plus a boot room, utility room and cellars.
The Old Rectory also boasts a triple garage with an apartment above and a barn for conversion into a four-bedroom house, subject to the usual planning consents.
Services include mains electricity, private drainage, oil-fired central heating and super-fast broadband via Gigaclear, which makes it eminently liveable for those looking to work from home.
Not that there’s a problem getting to Britain’s cities as needed: Duntisbourne Abbots offers excellent communications in all directions, with Kemble and Swindon stations providing fast rail links to London Paddington, and the nearby A417 linking up with the M4 at Swindon and the M5 at Gloucester.
The area also offers a choice of highly rated State and private schools, including the ever-popular Beaudesert Park prep at Minchinhampton and the various Cheltenham schools.
Credit: Jackson-Stops & Staff
A picture-perfect cottage in the Cotswolds for the price of a flat in the suburbs
Time to get out of London? A perfect example English country cottage is on the market in the heart of
Bruern Holiday Cottages: A cosy Cotswolds getaway perfect for a winter weekend
Bruern Holiday Cottages are the perfect place to spend a winter weekend curled up by the fire, discovers Victoria Marston.
-
A Clarkson's Farm of one's own: Five properties with just enough farmland for you and your family, from under £1 millionMoving to the country is one thing; moving to the country and being able to grow and rear all your own food is another level entirely, and all these properties offer exactly that.
-
Six superb homes, from chocolate box cottages to grand Tudor mansions, as seen in Country LifeOur regular round-up includes charming home counties houses and superb grand country house in Ireland.
-
A billionaire's thatched cottage is for sale in Surrey, once owned by the oil magnate J. Paul GettyChestnut Cottage is a joyous little home — albeit one with the most unusual bedrooms to acreage to price balances we've ever seen. Toby Keel takes a look inside.
-
Medieval Italian? 19th century French? 16th century German? You're spoilt for choice if you're looking to buy a gorgeous continental castleFrom hills of Italy to a Bavarian palace, Toby Keel takes a look at three of the finest castles for sale across Europe today.
-
How to buy a house at auctionBuying at auction can mean you secure your dream property for a bargain price, but preparation is the key
-
The homes of two 1980s TV icons are both up for sale at the same timeThe houses where Bob Monkhouse and Sir Terry Wogan spent decades of their lives are currently on the market. Annabel Dixon takes a look.
-
Living on the edge? A lighthouse for sale on a clifftop on one of the most remote islands in BritainBressay Lighthouse was built by the father and uncle of the 'Treasure Island' author.
-
Alan Titchmarsh is selling his Hampshire home (and the garden that comes with it): Exclusive pictures and interviewAfter many happy years in Hampshire, the writer, broadcaster and national treasure Alan Titchmarsh is selling up and looking to move. He spoke to Penny Churchill about his years at Manor Farm House.
