17th Century cottage restored to former glory

Owning a cottage in a country village is the aspiration of many people although sometimes the thought of the maintenance of an older property can be a little off putting. But a property that has come onto the market in Collingbourne Ducis gets over that problem. For although it retains all the appeal that comes from its 17th Century origins, it was largely rebuilt during 1995.

As a result, Crown Cottage in the High Street seems to give the ideal solution to the typical worries. It also features an attractive walled cottage garden as its crowning glory.

Collingbourne Ducis is well connected, with easy access to both Marlborough and Andover as well as Salisbury. Mainline trains can be accessed at nearby Pewsey and Andover while the M4 has junctions at Swindon and Hungerford and the M3 can be reached via the A303 from Andover.

Collingbourne itself has good facilities, with a new primary school, village store with post office, two public houses, and church. It is surrounded by beautiful rolling countryside, with Salisbury Plain to the south and west and the Marlborough Downs to the north.

Crown Cottage features exposed timbers and open fireplaces together with a newly-installed Shaker style kitchen and well-appointed Victorian style bathroom. The reception areas have been decorated in keeping with the character of the cottage and there are four bedrooms, one on the ground floor with French windows to the garden that could otherwise make an extra reception room or study.

A flagstone floor gives an appealing and practical touch in the kitchen / dining room, which has an ample dining area plus a long run of kitchen units into an area behind the angled brick chimney breast that then opens into a utility.

Steps from the kitchen lead up to the sitting room which offers a superb entertaining space with a large open fireplace at one end housing a woodburning stove. A door at the opposite end of the room opens into the fourth bedroom.

A staircase in the corner of the dining room leads up to one of the bedrooms while the other two bedrooms and the family bathroom are reached via a staircase in the sitting room. All three first floor bedrooms are of ample proportions while the bathroom has both a bath and corner shower cubicle.

Outside, the cottage is approached over a bridge crossing the village stream that then opens onto a driveway leading to a parking area. Beside the front door there is a small herb garden while behind the cottage is an attractive south and west facing walled garden with a paved terrace and abundantly stocked borders.

Guide price for the cottage, for sale through the Marlborough office of Dreweatt Neate, is £410,000.

For more details, visit Dreweatt-neate.co.uk.