Football legend approves home substitution

England and Manchester City footballing legend, Colin Bell, has put his stamp of approval on a new multimillion pound property due for construction in Hale Barns in Cheshire, despite it meaning his home of over 37 years will have to be demolished to make way for it.

When Colin and his wife Marie put their property up for sale just over a year ago, they knew it would most likely be purchased by a developer keen to put something more modern in its place - they had done much the same thing back in the early 70’s.

Long before WAGS, six figure salaries and property search agents, the newlywed Bells had to rely on Marie’s father to help them find a home to suit their modest 1970’s footballers budget.

Says Colin, "Marie's father was quite entrepreneurial and interested in property. He told us about a plot of land coming up for sale near their family home. It was an old orchard and he felt we could get a better property if we built one ourselves rather than buying on the open market.”

The location was perfect for an up and coming footballing hero in need of a private place to retreat from the press and adoring fans; situated on the edge of a conservation area on a no-through road surrounded by a farm and fields, yet close enough to the village for a young family not to feel isolated.

With help from Marie’s father, they purchased the plot and recruited a local builder, Jimmy Keating, to construct a very modern open-plan mansion out of York stone; in total contrast to the traditional style Cheshire brick homes in the immediate area.

“Jimmy had built a restaurant we owned in Whitefield, we trusted him and he knew the kind of thing we liked. He had never built a home before so looking back I guess it was a bit of a gamble.

“We chose York stone after a trip to see my parents in the North East. We saw some houses being built in that material and really liked the look of it. We had no idea it would be such a laborious task, Jimmy had to carve each stone by hand!”, Colin recalls.

Back in Colin’s heyday, Council planners were a little more trusting than they are today and it was only after plans were passed and the project was well under way that a visiting Inspector fully understood just how different and modern the home was going to be. “But by then it was too late,“ says Colin.” The property was chalet style with an off centre roofline and open plan interiors. Decadent design details included a central fireplace and open staircase.

The build took two years to complete and was a labour of love for Keating, whose final flourish was to embed a stone sporting a bell shaped carving above the doorway.

Although they made some minor alterations with the arrival of their two children, Colin and Marie changed very little in the 37 years they lived there. Says Colin, “We have some very fond memories from our time there, of great parties and the children growing up, but after the kids left home we just decided it was too big and it needed some work doing to it. We decided it was time to start looking for somewhere else to live.”

After such an idyllic setting it took a long time for Colin and Marie to find somewhere to equal their old home. After five years of searching they’ve settled on a small development of new homes in a private location in rural Cheshire.

Their home was purchased by developers Westshield Homes last Summer. Says Colin, “When Westshield came to us with an offer they were upfront with their plans and showed us the property they hoped to build on the land.

“Whilst we were sad to see the old house go we were also pleased that they would be following in our footsteps and creating something modern, just as we did. The new home is impressive and very well designed; it really makes the most of the location.”

Westshield’s take on The Orchard is just as ahead of its time as the Bell’s was, yet manages to be equally respectful to the superb setting.

Constructed using modern building methods, the property will be composed of smooth white render, stone and timber and will offer approximately 5500 sqft of accommodation on four levels.

Instead of a central fireplace, Westshield’s property will feature an impressive entrance hall with central atrium and a ‘floating’ staircase. The kitchen will be modern open plan with a range of equipment capable of keeping even Gordon Ramsay happy.

Five bedroom suites are planned including a master suite offering a spa style bathroom and a walk in wardrobe big enough to store any number of designer labels.

An open plan dining room and living room with folding concertina doors onto a rear patio area is the perfect place for Premiership parties and the top floor houses a home cinema fitted with Dolby Surround Sound.

No modern home in this area would be complete without a gym and swimming pool and Westshield has devoted the majority of the basement to these modern day essentials. Rather than being completely below ground, the basement at The Orchard has been opened up on one side so that glazed concertina doors can open from the pool area onto a stone patio with steps up to the rear gardens – the perfect private sun trap.

This is not the first multi-million pound property constructed by Westshield in the area. They have built a modern day Arts and Crafts inspired home just around the corner on Chapel Lane.

Says Laurie Bradley, development manager for the firm, “The way in which houses are constructed these days is very different to the early 1970’s when the Bells built their home. We have much stricter building regulations and standards of energy efficiency to meet and more modern methods of design and construction. The old house had to go.

“We respected the fact that the Bell’s home had been progressive and we wanted to pay homage to that. It was also important to us, out of respect for what they had achieved all those years ago, that they gave their blessing to the new home that would carry their old property’s name.”

Work has begun on the development and the Bell’s former property has already been removed to make way for Westshield’s vision.

Says Colin, “It was strange to see it go but there’s no denying that the new property is an improvement. Marie and I have both said that if we were starting out again we would definitely like to buy it.”

As a memento of their former home, Westshield carefully extracted the bell stone put in place all those years ago by builder Jimmy Keating, and presented it to Colin and Marie.

Westshield is expected to complete The Orchard in early 2010 although it will go on the market at an estimated price of £3.25m well before completion, says Laurie, “When building a property for the top end of the market we try to remain flexible about final decisions, such as the style of kitchen and bathrooms. Some purchasers have a very clear vision of what they want so we always provide a window of opportunity for the purchaser to personalise the finer details of the home.”

For more information on The Orchard and other Westshield Homes properties, log on to Westshieldhomes.co.uk.