Penny Churchill takes a tour of The Old Vicarage, a house set in a gorgeous slice of countryside yet which is easy commuting distance from London.
It’s something of a mystery why The Old Vicarage in Bearsted has avoided becoming a listed building. After all, this is a delightful and ancient village in Kent with a 13th century church and a conservation area; perhaps being ‘only’ 150 years old in its present configuration was its saving grace. Regardless of the reason, prospective buyers will rest that little bit easier, and can concentrate on the pluses of a large, handsome family home in a tranquil setting that is only just beyond the fringes of London and the M25.
Matt Hodder-Williams of Knight Frank in Sevenoaks quotes a guide price of £2.1m for this rambling, white-painted house that sits immediately next to the aforementioned (and Grade I-listed) church, in the oldest part of the village conservation area.
And while it isn’t listed, the care and attention that’s been lavished upon the place to keep it as charming and original as it looks today is really something else.
Acquired by the current vendors in 2021, the former vicarage, which stands in an acre of grounds above Bearsted Green with far-reaching views towards the North Downs, has been overhauled and updated with no expense spared, from new tiles and lead on the entrance doorway to replacement chimneys and tiles on the north-west façade.
The house provides 4,454sq ft of well-organised, light-filled living space, including four reception rooms, five/six bedrooms, four bathrooms and garaging for five or more cars. The Old Vicarage is located close to several excellent schools and within walking distance of the mainline station, which provides fast commuter services to London Victoria and London Bridge.
In his History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent (1798), historian Edward Hasted describes Bearsted as standing ‘on what may be termed high ground, being extremely pleasant and dry… The high road from Ashford and Lenham towards Maid-stone runs along the northern boundaries, passing over Bersted green, the houses round which form the parish village. The Church — a handsome building dedicated to the Holy Cross — is situated on high ground at a small distance south of Bersted-green’.
Although Bearsted Green was gradually developed in Victorian times, Holy Cross Church, the vicarage, the historic Mote Hall estate and its farm buildings remained an isolated group overlooking fields until the late 1820s, when an earlier parsonage was replaced by ‘a small neat residence’ to the north-east of the church.
The vicarage was subsequently extended following the enlargement of the churchyard between 1873 and 1883, although the church’s ancient character and setting were retained and today form the core of the conservation area.
The Old Vicarage in Bearsted is for sale at £2.1m – see more pictures and details.
