An impressive detached, Victorian former school and school house, retaining a wealth of character features with 3 receptions, 4-bedrooms and small garden, set in a peaceful small village

An interesting 2-storey school and slightly lower house built in 1857 from red brick walls with contrasting yellow brick quoins and slate roof. The original windows have small-pane iron-frame Gothic glazing bars and now have secondary glazing to improve energy conservation. This property was converted in the 1970’s by Vernon Gibberd, a London Architect, the ground floor classroom now forms the Dining Hall, a Bedroom and Bathroom, and the one upstairs has been retained as a large lounge with a vaulted ceiling, excellent natural daylight and a wood burning stove. Cross Cottage retains a wealth of character features, has oil-fired central heating, partial secondary glazing and briefly provides: - Ground Floor - Dining Hall, double Bedroom, Bathroom, Breakfast Room, Kitchen and Lobby; First Floor - 24’ x 16’ Lounge (off a separate stairs) and two Bedrooms; Second Floor - Attic Bedroom / Studio. In addition there is a private Courtyard, an enclosed yard with storage and a small elevated garden with a lawn.

HISTORY - The school was built in 1857 and bears the crest on the Eastern gable of Francis Aspinall Philips, whose family re-built the neighbouring St. Mary’s Church and The Hall. They also built a lake and a water turbine supplied electricity to the Hall and the original street lamp below the crest is believed to be the first in Radnorshire. The Philips family found the noise of the schoolchildren distracting so they built a second school in 1868 about ½-mile up the valley (closed 1969) and the original school was used as a Laundry for the Hall, before being converted by the vendor 30 years ago and it is now known as Cross Cottage. This property was Listed in 2004 “For its architectural interest as a well-preserved 19th Century school and school house retaining original character and detail, and for its contribution to the historic character of the village”.

Abbeycwmhir (meaning: Abbey in the Long Valley) is an historic small village set in a small sheltered valley in the beautiful Cambrian Mountains, named after the Cistercian Abbey that was founded there in 1143 and was planned to be the largest in Wales, but it was never completed and it was slighted in 1644 during the English Civil War. It has a traditional public house (The Happy Union), a sub-Post Office, Church, Community Centre and Village Green (located within 50 yards and originally the garden for the school, with picnic benches, lawns and ornamental trees). This is a peaceful, secluded village that is only accessed off minor roads and is surrounded by beautiful hills and woodland. It is a popular destination for walkers, being on Glyndwr’s Way (132 mile National Trail) and there are many other great walks. Cross Cottage is located on the Village Square next to St. Mary’s Church, opposite the pub and a school bus runs from here. There is a Primary School and Service Station (with a Nisa Shop and Café at Crossgates (5½ miles), the historic market town of Rhayader is 6½ miles to the West and the County Town and Spa resort of Llandrindod Wells is 9 miles South. Together they provides a good range of shopping and business facilities, Tesco Superstore, Aldi Supermarket, secondary school, Cottage Hospital, Theatre, active U3A, two sports centres, indoor and outdoor bowls, and an historic 18-hole golf course. The City of Hereford, coastal resort of Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury are all about a 1¼-hour drive (Note - All times dependent on traffic levels). In the ( ... ) surveys of 2017, 2019 and 2020 Llandrindod Wells was declared the “Happiest Town in Wales” (In 2020 fourth overall in UK from survey of 22,000 people).