Location

The farmhouse is to the west of the ancient village of Beachamwell, home to St Mary's, a 1000 year old thatched church. There is an excellent public house, The Bedingfeld Arms, in the neighbouring village of Oxborough. The picturesque market town of Swaffham (where the television series Kingdom with Stephen Fry was filmed) lies about 4 miles to the east and has excellent shopping including a Waitrose supermarket, banking, pubs and restaurants, doctors surgery and golf club.

The town provides primary and secondary education, with private education further into Norfolk with Greshams and Beeston Hall, whilst Thetford Grammar and Culford School are to the south. The area is famous for its unspoilt open countryside, wide open skies and large areas of Forestry Commission woodland which provide excellent opportunities for walking and riding. Thetford Forest is the largest lowland pine forest in England extending to about 47,000 acres.

There are regular trains to London King’s Cross from Downham Market (9.5 miles) with an approximate journey time of 1 hour 28 minutes. There are also trains to Cambridge from Downham Market with an approximate journey time of 31 minutes. Cambridge is only 40 miles by road.

Description

St John’s farmhouse is a handsome West Norfolk farmhouse, built in the mid 1800’s with a wonderfully rural outlook across farmland to the south, and the private gardens to the west. The location provides fantastic privacy, particularly with the inclusion of an extensive range of traditional and modern outbuildings, where the imagination runs wild as to the possibilities of their uses.

The House
Whilst a farmhouse in name, the house has more of an Old Rectory feel to it with fine rooms and plenty of period detail to add elements of grandeur. The formal rooms at the front of the house are supported by the day to day functional rooms at the rear, with an abundance of space making for a comfortable and easy living style.

At the heart of it all is the spacious kitchen/breakfast room, with deep green Aga, hand built cabinetry and direct access, through French doors, to the verandah and formal gardens. The dining room, with fireplace, is conveniently next door to the kitchen, leading into the expansive entrance and staircase hall at the front of the house. Either side of this is the sitting room, a dual aspect room with fireplace, and the particularly fine drawing room with bespoke alcove cabinets. All the main rooms have excellent ceiling height that accentuates the space and light of the house. A succession of rooms on the eastern side of the house are the essential areas for day to day living, with a study, a second and more informal entrance hall, the boot room, utility room and laundry. There is also a cellar.

The first floor matches the ground floor, therefore affording an excellent layout and extent of rooms. At the front of the house, off a large landing, is the principal bedroom with built in wardrobes and en suite bathroom, and the principal guest room, again with en suite bathroom. A further bedroom with en suite bathroom is at the rear of the house, with three further bedrooms served by the family bathroom. The house has a staircase at either end of the house, with the elegant stairs at the front of the house and a smaller back stairs.

The farmhouse is in good order, with a new boiler installed in 2024. There are areas which the next custodians may wish to improve.

The Outbuildings
Forming part of the back of the house is a line of outhouses, with a large boiler room (and therefore a brilliant drying room), workshop and stores. Next to the house are the traditionally built garaging, likely a former coach house, which provides great storage.

To the east of the house are a significant range of outbuildings, both traditional and modern, which are largely a blank canvas and could be utilised in many different ways.

The majority of the outbuildings are centred around two yards. The initial yard is flanked by most attractive single storey Victorian stabling and open fronted cart bays, with lunette windows. This area has serious charm, and with the south to west orientation, it could make for the most wonderful leisure complex with swimming pool, gym, spa area. The imagination runs wild with such a space. A modern and substantial general purpose barn provides plenty of storage space, with the second yard with separate vehicular access also being flanked by a succession of single storey store rooms, of traditional construction.

Outside
The maturity of the gardens are delightful, and compliment the house. There is a lovely form to it all, whilst there is an opportunity to regenerate some areas that have the fundamentals needed, but require new planting schemes.

The majority of the gardens are to the south and west of the house. Expanses of lawn stretch away from the house, creating an open aspect from the verandah which is perfect for afternoon and evening sun. The lawns are framed either side by beech hedging, creating defined areas. Along the northern boundary is a high brick wall, creating a south facing garden with deep herbaceous beds, box hedging, paths and a traditional greenhouse. Throughout the rest of the gardens are fine trees including horse chestnut, beech and oak, together with various shrubs, a wooded area with chicken pens, and a hard tennis court that would now require attention.

The entrance to the farmhouse is from the east, over a gravelled driveway sweeping up to the house and a parking area, with the drive continuing to the side of the house and garaging.

Further land to the south of the house is available by seperate negotiation, providing areas for paddocks, or landscaping, together with potential to create a new driveway and approach to the house.

Directions

The What3words code for the entrance gates is: engulfing.easily.pace