No bars, no signal predictedOne bar, reliable signal unlikelyTwo bars, may experience problems with connectivityThree bars, likely to have good coverage and receive a data rate to support basic web servicesFull bars, likely to have good coverage indoors and to receive an enhanced data rate to support multimedia services
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This property is no longer on the market

6 bedroom country house

Auction
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Country house
6 bed
5 bath
EPC rating: G*
4,822 sq ft / 448 sq m

Key information

Tenure: Freehold
Council tax: Band H
Broadband: Super-fast 77Mbps *
Mobile signal: 
EE O2 Three Vodafone
Water: Ask agent
Heating: Ask agent
Electricity: Ask agent
Sewerage: Ask agent
Discover more information

Property description & features

  • Tenure: Freehold
  • Wonderful 6 Bedroom Country House
  • Spacious and well-presented accommodation
  • Gardens with heated pool, orchard and paddock
  • Off street parking and garaging
  • Open outlook with views to the South Downs
  • Walking distance to Cooksbridge Station one mile, Lewes town centre two miles
  • Tenure: Freehold
LOT NUMBER: 223

SALE BY AUCTION/SECURE NOW METHOD
Bidding Start Price: £2,750,000
Secure Now Price: £3,200,000
Buyer Fees: £6000 inc. VAT

TENURE: Freehold

For legal pack and other information, you would need to register on our website just-sold dot co dot UK

Address: Old School House, The Street, East Sussex, BN7 3QB

EPC Rating: E

Lewes District Council Tax Band H

DESCRIPTION
Substantial detached house with gardens and outdoor pool situated in a lovely position at the foot of the South Downs. Old School House is a fine detached house, situated on a private drive at the foot of Black Cap, in the beautiful countryside of the South Downs National Park. The property was once Hamsey Parish's school and was built as a single-storey building in 1849. In 1959, it was redeveloped as a home, adding two floors in a style sympathetic to the original, using local brick, tiles, and flint - the dates are recorded on two builders' stones, which can be seen outside the drawing room bay window.

Old School House has fine flint and tile hung elevations under a clay tiled roof, sash windows to most windows, and generously proportioned rooms. It offers well-appointed, bright, and light accommodation arranged over three floors, and is ideally suited to family life, with three versatile reception rooms, six bedrooms, and five bathrooms.

The floorplans give an excellent overview of the full extent and layout of the property; the spacious reception hall sets the scene for the house, with wood flooring and an elegant turned staircase. Double doors open to the largest of the reception rooms, the dual aspect drawing room, which has a working fireplace with marble mantelpiece, and French doors to the side terrace; which offers space for a dining table.

The adjoining room is currently used as a less formal reception room for day-to-day family use; and could be used as a dining room if required. And leads in turn to the kitchen/breakfast room, the conservatory, and back to the reception hall, which gives access to the library, with a bay window framing the views over the swimming pool and garden. Double doors open to the Marston and Langinger Conservatory, which has climate control, interior blinds, and doors to the rear garden.

The kitchen/breakfast room is well-equipped with a good range of bespoke pippy oak wall-hung and under-counter units, complemented by granite worktops and a two-oven Aga. It is served by a boot room, the original main access to the School, which in turn leads to the garden. A cloakroom lies off the entrance hall, completing the ground floor accommodation.

On the first floor, the principal bedroom suite comprises a dual-aspect bedroom with a balcony, offering spectacular views across the valley towards Hamsey and of the adjoining South Downs. It is served by a separate shower room and dressing room, fitted with an excellent range of bespoke wardrobes.

Lying off the main landing are three further bedrooms (two en suite), a bathroom, and a laundry room; at the head of the main staircase is a door to the large balcony over the garaging, which is decked and has space for a table and chairs, creating a wonderful spot to sit and enjoy the views over the surrounding countryside. The fifth bedroom is in the northern wing of the house and can be accessed via a secondary staircase from the kitchen. It is served by a bathroom and could be closed off from the rest of the first floor, for guests or perhaps staff. A further bedroom, which is currently used as a home office, is found on the second floor; a large eaves store completes the accommodation.

GARDENS AND GROUNDS
Old School House is set back from The Street, accessed via a long private driveway, which belongs to the property and over which two of the neighboring properties have right of way.

The house enjoys an open aspect, facing farmland and the South Downs; ahead of the house and the attached double garage is a spacious cobbled drive, and off-street parking for around seven cars.

The beautiful gardens are mainly arranged to the south and east of Old School House and are landscaped into distinct sections, and set behind a tall brick wall offering privacy from the driveway. To the south of the house lies a pretty walled garden, with formal beds surrounding an expanse of lawn; a path leads round to the rear garden, which is accessed from the kitchen and the conservatory. At the far end lies the enclosed kitchen garden with raised beds, a greenhouse, and a timber shed. Beyond this lies the swimming pool, which is securely fenced from the rest of the garden, with picket fencing to the south and by a wall to the north and east; from the pool terrace a path leads past the side of the house giving access to the pool machinery store and on to a gate to the front of the house.

The house and gardens are flanked by two paddocks, each with access from the driveway; the northern paddock is about an acre. The southern paddock is just over half an acre and planted as an orchard with an array of fruit trees. The borehole providing the water supply to Old School House and the three cottages is sited in this paddock, together with a shed for the borehole equipment; there is a right of access across this paddock for servicing the borehole.

LOCATION
Situated in Offham, a charming village at the foot of the South Downs to the north of Lewes, with a pub, church, petrol station, and a farm shop with a café. The busy country town of Lewes offers comprehensive amenities including a range of independent and high street stores, theatre, cinema, and leisure centre. The centre is just under two miles from the house and can be reached by foot by one of the many public footpaths and bridleways that Old School House is close to. There is a pavement running along the A275, giving pedestrian access to Cooksbridge and its railway station.

There are many leisure activities available locally, including local clubs for football, rugby, cricket, and theatre; across Sussex, activities include show jumping at Hickstead, sailing at Brighton Marina, and golf at one of the many courses across the county. Spa and country house hotels include Ockenden Manor, Alexander House, Ashdown Park, Gravetye Manor, and South Lodge.

Sussex offers a vibrant cultural scene, with world-class opera at Glyndebourne, theatre at Royal Tunbridge Wells and the historic County town of Lewes, and the annual Brighton Festival presenting a huge program of theatre, dance, classical music, and literary events.

RAIL SERVICES: Cooksbridge is one mile, London Bridge/Victoria from 42 minutes.

Schools: There are a number of highly regarded state and independent schools and colleges in the local area, including Hamsey primary school (Cooksbridge), Lewes Priory, Lewes Old Grammar School, Cumnor House, Great Walstead, Hurstpierpoint College, Bede's and Brighton College. A number of private schools offer bus services for students which stop in the village.
All distances and journey times are approximate.

AIRPORT SERVICES;
Gatwick Airport is a 35-minute drive, Brighton is 20 minutes to the city and beach, and Shoreham Airport is 20 minutes away.

Square Footage: 5,248 sq ft
Acreage: 2.7 Acres

ADDITIONAL INFO
Parking is off the small private access-only road which is owned by Old School House

Agent's Note: The bee hives, yurt, and garden furniture including large plant pots and curtains are not included in the sale, but are available by separate negotiation. Carpets are included.

Services: Oil-fired central heating. Mains Electricity. Private water and drainage.

Note: Viewings can be arranged by appointment only. Kindly contact us to book your slot.

This property is being sold under the Modern Method of Auction, which requires the completion of the purchase to be within 28/84 days, although all reasonable endeavors must be made to exchange contracts asap following the draft contract being received by the buyer's solicitor.

This property is sold subject to payment of a non-refundable 10% deposit.

The estate agent and auctioneer may recommend the services of other providers to you, for which they will be paid for the referral. These services are optional, and you will be advised of any payment, in writing before any services are accepted. Listing is subject to a bidding start price and an undisclosed reserve price that can change.

Important Notice

1. AML (Money Laundering Regulations): Buyers will be required to register themselves with just-sold.co.uk as a buyer and clear the compliance checks prior to bidding, placing an offer, or buying

2. The Sales particulars are only a general guide to the property however, we make our sales particulars fair and accurate to the best of our knowledge

3. These particulars do not form any part of any offer or contract. The particulars should be independently verified by the buyers

4. The measurements indicated are supplied for guidance only
Property Ref: 223
For viewing arrangement, please use just-sold online viewing system.

If calling, please quote reference: 223

GDPR: Applying for above property means you are giving us permission to pass your details to the vendor or landlord for further communication related to viewing arrangement or more property related information. If you disagree, please write to us in the message so we do not forward your details to the vendor or landlord or their managing company.

MONEY LAUNDERING REGULATIONS: Intending purchasers will be asked to produce identification documentation at a later stage and we would ask for your co-operation in order that there will be no delay in agreeing on the sale.

General: While we endeavor to make our sales particulars fair, accurate and reliable, they are only a general guide to the property and, accordingly, if there is any point which is of particular importance to you, please contact just-sold and we will be pleased to check the position for you, especially if you are contemplating traveling some distance to view the property.

Measurements: These approximate room sizes are only intended as general guidance. You must verify the dimensions carefully before ordering any household goods, carpets or any built-in furniture.

Services: Please note we have not tested the services or any of the equipment or appliances in this property, accordingly we strongly advise prospective buyers or tenant to commission their own survey or service reports before finalizing their offer to purchase.

Disclaimer: just-sold is the seller's agent for this property. Your conveyancer is legally responsible for ensuring any purchase agreement fully protects your position. We make detailed enquiries of the seller to ensure the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Please inform us if you become aware of any information being inaccurate.

Additional Information

Council Tax band: H

Places of interest

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    *DISCLAIMER

    Property reference 223_EAF_110672. The information displayed about this property comprises a property advertisement. OnTheMarket.com makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the advertisement or any linked or associated information, and OnTheMarket.com has no control over the content provided by the agent or developer. This property advertisement does not constitute property particulars. The information is provided and maintained by 99home - Wembley.

    OnTheMarket may have applied supplementary data to this property listing, including:

    Broadband availability and predicted speed: obtained from Ofcom on June 22, 2022

    Broadband speed is measured in megabits per second, with the number returned showing how fast the connection is. Each reading is based on the highest predicted speed of any major broadband network for services that deliver the download speeds. The following are the different readings that we may display:

    Basic: Up to 30 Mbit/s
    Super-fast: Between 30 Mbit/s and 300 Mbit/s
    Ultra-fast: Over 300 Mbit/s

    The data is updated three times a year. The checker results are predictions and should not be regarded as guaranteed. For more information, see: https://checker.ofcom.org.uk/en-gb/about-checker#Answer_0_2

    Mobile phone signal availability and predicted strength: obtained from Ofcom on June 22, 2022

    Mobile signal predictions are provided by the four UK mobile network operators: EE, O2, Three and Vodafone. Predictions can vary significantly from the coverage you may actually experience as a result of local factors (especially terrain). Ofcom has tested the actual coverage provided in various locations around the UK to help ensure that these predictions are reasonable. The values shown against a property can be broken down as follows:

    Clear: No bars, no signal predicted
    Red: One bar, reliable signal unlikely
    Amber: Two bars, may experience problems with connectivity
    Green: Three bars, likely to have good coverage and receive a data rate to support basic web services
    Enhanced: Full bars, likely to have good coverage indoors and to receive an enhanced data rate to support multimedia services

    Energy Performance data and Internal floor area: obtained on August 1, 2022 from The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007 or the Home Report if in relation to a residential property in Scotland.

    Any supplementary data should not be relied upon as forming part of any property particulars and OnTheMarket cannot be held responsible for any incorrectness in this data. See here for more information.

    *Call rate information

    Calls to 0843 numbers will be charged at 4p/min from BT landlines. Calls from other networks may vary, and calls from mobiles and outside the UK will be higher. Calls to local numbers beginning with 01, 02 and 03 numbers will incur standard geographic charges from landlines and mobiles.