Penny Churchill looks at the Southend Estate, where hundreds of acres of space are on the market just a stone's throw from the capital.
Crispin Holborow of Savills quotes a guide price of £16m for the immaculate, 554-acre, Southend sporting and agricultural estate, which sits in rolling Chilterns countryside overlooking the glorious Hambleden Valley, six miles from the pretty market town of Henley-on-Thames. The land was originally part of the Turville Court estate, which was acquired in 1996 by the current owner, who demolished the existing house and replaced it with a new country mansion that was sold away with 54 acres in 2008.
At the heart of the Southend estate are six let residential properties and equestrian facilities, which provide a useful rental income in addition to the in-hand farming operation. These include the pretty main farmhouse, with its sheltered gardens and fine views.
There also also three detached cottages within a gated courtyard to the north-west of the farm buildings and stables, plus a pair of semi-detached cottages within the hamlet of Southend, each let on an assured shorthold tenancy, except for the American Barn, a detached barn conversion that is currently used for short-term holiday lets.
For the prospective buyer looking for a fittingly grand house to live in on their new estate, things become slightly more complicated — though the potential upside is wonderful. The present owner has recently commissioned a planning appraisal from Oxford-based John Phillips Planning Consultancy for the erection of a new principal dwelling and two ancillary outbuildings, based on the premise that many of the farm buildings in the existing farmyard would be removed, together with the surrounding concrete hardstanding and the American Barn dwelling.
The new buildings, comprising a 12,700sq ft main house, a 2,152sq ft recreation building and a 1,829sq ft garage/store, would be built — subject to planning — in traditional style, on the sloping ground at the southern end of the existing farmyard.
The design of the farmhouse allows for four floors with an indoor pool, gym and sauna on the lower-ground floor and four large reception rooms, a study, cloakroom and boot room on the ground floor. The master suite with two dressing rooms and bathrooms, and three guest bedrooms are planned for the first floor, with three further guest suites on the second floor.
The proposal includes a garage and party barn linked to the principal house, with a kitchen, barn and open-plan recreational space. It also includes a new dedicated access through surrounding land that would be carefully landscaped with the emphasis on achieving Biodiversity Net Gain; further information is available from the selling agents.
As things stand today, situated between the farm buildings and the Southend residential courtyard are 10 stables and a feed room. The equestrian facilities include an outdoor school, post-and-railed paddocks and water-troughs and direct access to an outstanding network of local bridleways.
Although the shoot, previously run in association with the adjoining farm, didn’t run last season, the topography of the land — a mix of 106 acres of arable, 237 acres of permanent pasture and 190 acres of woodland — allows for a first-class pheasant and partridge shoot to be re-established, should a new owner wish to do so.
Following its acquisition in 1996, the site of the main farm buildings was completely redeveloped with the creation of a state-of-the-art organic dairy unit, completed in 1999. Dairying has now ceased and the buildings are currently used as part of a beef and sheep livestock operation.
The Southend Estate is for sale at £16 million — see more details and pictures.
Best country houses for sale this week
Grandeur in Devon, charm in Surrey and much more on offer in our pick of the best homes to appear
