5 bed detached house for sale

Ash Priors, Taunton, Somerset TA4.

Situated on the edge of the village with views over unspoilt farmland towards the Blackdown Hills twenty miles away, Court House is an impressive and eye catching Queen Anne-style farmhouse built in 1725. It is Grade II listed and built of lovely mellow red brick with its front decorated by a regular pattern of purple bricks and an impressive portico supported by Tuscan Doric columns and a Welsh slate roof adorned with bonneted dormer windows. To the rear it has a 2-storey south-facing Victorian wing with Welsh-slate roof that looks out over the garden.

Court House offers not only multi generational living, but several other possible uses including serviced accommodation; holiday lets; renting on Assured Shorthold Tenancies, or a small business.

A programme of renovation and improvement has now been largely completed by the current owners, with sufficient remaining to enable new owners to put their own stamp on the house. It has retained many original architectural features including timber floors, wainscot panelling, fireplaces, cornicing, picture rails and window seats.
Since the EPCs for the Barn and the main House were assessed, internal wall insulation has been added and other work has been done to further improve the ratings.

The ground floor currently has three reception rooms, all of which have fireplaces fitted with wood-burning stoves, plus a lovely farmhouse kitchen that looks out onto the garden. The kitchen is fitted with an Indesit range cooker and has ample space for a big kitchen table and a sofa and adjacent to it is a large workroom that would make an ideal family room.

Off the first floor landing is the principal bedroom with an en suite bath and shower room, three further double bedrooms and the family bathroom. A secondary landing leads to the games room, which has a vaulted ceiling and windows on two sides and at the far end is a further double bedroom that currently serves as a home office. A self-contained flat with four double bedrooms and its own ground floor entrance has been created from the house's extensive suite of attic rooms. This additional accommodation could be included within the rest of the house with no structural change.

Cottage & Barn
Behind the house is a single-storey three bedroom, two bathroom barn conversion with its own parking, garden and paved courtyard. Attached to, and to the north of the main house, is a three bedroom, two bathroom cottage with its own garden. Both have been let very successfully for some years under Assured Shorthold Tenancies providing a steady income stream. However, if required, the cottage and flat could be incorporated into Court House which would be ideal for families seeking a multi-generational living arrangement where a good level of privacy is desirable for two or more households.

Outbuildings, garden & grounds
Court House is approached via a curving driveway leading to a gravelled parking area in front of the house and passing a circular, spring-fed pond with an ornamental fountain at its centre, overlooked by a mature Japanese flowering cherry tree. A stream flows out of the pond through the south-facing, lawned garden, which is bounded by mature hedging and trees.

Behind the house is further parking, an attractive granary supported on staddle stones, single garage and a workshop with integral office. Beyond the rear parking area is a sloping, south-facing, one acre paddock enclosed by stock-proof fencing with fantastic views from its highest point.

Court House has a lovely setting on the edge of the small village of Ash Priors, which is surrounded by unspoilt countryside nestling between the Quantocks, Blackdown and Brendon Hills and is within easy reach of Exmoor and the North Somerset coast.

The village itself has a 15th century church and village hall and the nearby village of Bishops Lydeard has a farm shop, Co-op convenience store and two popular pubs. For day-to-day requirements Wellington has a good range of shops and local businesses including a Waitrose supermarket and Taunton is also within easy reach.

Nearby transport links include the A358 and the M5, Taunton has regular rail services to Bristol Temple Meads (52 minutes) and Paddington (1 hour 39 minutes) and Exeter and Bristol airports are both within reach.

There is an excellent range of schooling available from both the State and independent sectors. This includes three village primary schools within a three mile radius and several good private schools including Blundells, Taunton School, King's and Queen's Colleges in Taunton, King's Hall Preparatory School and Richard Huish Sixth Form College.

Bishops Lydeard 1.5 miles, Taunton station 6 miles (Bristol 52 minutes & Paddington 1 hour 39 minutes), Wellington 8 miles, J25 M5 8.1 miles Bridgwater Bay 13.3 miles, Exeter Airport 29.3 miles, Exeter City Centre 36.6 miles, Bristol Airport 41.6 miles (All distances and times are approximate)