Streatley Hill Building Plot, Streatley on Thames

STREATLEY HILL BUILDING PLOT
STREATLEY ON THAMES – BERKSHIRE

Goring Station 1.5 miles          Wallingford 5 miles     Reading 9.5 miles
Henley on Thames 13 miles    Newbury 14 miles       Oxford 18 miles
M4 at Theale (J.12) 10 miles   M40 at Lewknor (J.6) 15 miles
(Distances & Times Approximate)

Privately situated on the edge of the village adjacent to ancient woodland and an exclusive golf course, an opportunity to create an iconic contemporary property of some 4500 sq ft with 4 reception rooms, 5 bedrooms and a detached garage in grounds of 0.7 of an acre.

Situated on the edge of this quintessential English riverside village within easy walking distance of the River Thames, shops, amenities, schools and mainline station.

• Open plan layout with extensive glazing in order to enjoy the glorious views over the manicured golf course, woodland and substantial garden

• Many stunning design features with 3 metre high ceilings to the principal ground floor rooms
• Highly sustainable with the latest technologies to minimise carbon footprint and running costs
• Striking external finishes that are sympathetic to the woodland setting and position on the North Wessex Downs with its seams of flint
• Peaceful woodland-edge location with mature hedging and trees along its boundaries
• A walker’s paradise being adjacent to National Trust woodland with walks along spectacular hillsides with views of the Thames Valley
• Planning permission granted in October 2023, the full details of which can be found at the West Berkshire Council web site (application reference 23/01390/FUL) or by enquiring at the offices of Warmingham & Co
• Existing fully functional 3 bedroom bungalow within the grounds that can be retained until the new property has been occupied and that can act either as accommodation for a self-builder or welfare and storage for a builder
• Easily accessible for shops, amenities and outstanding schools with a mainline station for London Paddington (in under an hour) in Goring on Thames and the M4 & M40 within easy reach as are Oxford, Reading & Newbury

LOCATION
The picturesque village of Streatley on Thames lies in a valley on the Berkshire side of the river between Reading and Oxford, facing Goring on the Oxfordshire side. The surrounding countryside is designated an area of ‘Outstanding Natural Beauty’ and historically this was a natural crossing point of the river, set between the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills, known geographically as the ‘Goring Gap’. The interesting High Street, which forms the central part of the village running down to the river and the bridge across to Goring, is now a ‘Conservation Area’ where there are a wealth of period properties many of considerable architectural merit including thatched cottages, a beautiful William and Mary house and an Elizabethan Farmhouse, supposedly haunted by a lady in white. Following the building of the railway through the Thames Valley by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in approximately 1840, the villagers of Streatley decided the railway should go on the Goring side with the result now that while Streatley has changed little, the village of Goring on Thames has grown substantially and is now the larger village.

In Streatley there is a parish church with Norman origins, a luxury riverside four star hotel, The Swan, which also offers a leisure and fitness club and at the top of the High Street is the Bull Inn which was a coaching inn when the Royal Mail stopped en-route between Oxford and London. There is also a prestigious golf club, established over one hundred years ago, set amidst beautiful rolling countryside. The village also boasts its own very well regarded Streatley Primary School, with the outstanding secondary school, ‘The Downs’, being in catchment for the village also, and having its own bus route. In addition to having high standard local state primary and secondary schooling, the area is also extremely well served by an excellent range of private schooling, of particular note; Cranford House School, The Oratory Preparatory School, Moulsford Preparatory School, St Andrews Preparatory School, The Oratory School, Pangbourne College, Brockhurst & Marlston House, Downe House, Rupert House School, Shiplake College, The Abbey School, Bradfield College, The Manor Preparatory School, Abingdon School, Abingdon Preparatory School, Radley College, and St Helen & St Katharine.

Behind Streatley the ground rises steeply where the Berkshire Downlands meet the wide Thames Valley and from the top there are panoramic views far into Oxfordshire. The woodland and hills surrounding Streatley have been acquired in recent years by the National Trust and the extensive bridleways and footpaths are now open to the public.

Across the river, the larger village of Goring-on-Thames offers a wide range of amenities and facilities including shops, modern health centre, traditional inns, a hotel, library, dentist and importantly a main line railway station providing excellent commuter services to Oxford, Reading and up to London (Paddington). There is also easy access for the major local towns, including Oxford, Reading and Newbury, the M40 and M4 motorways, the latter linking directly to Heathrow.

Crossrail (Elizabeth Line) services have commenced from Reading, which together with the completed electrification of the line has significantly improved travelling times to East and West destinations.

NEW PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
Planning permission has been granted for the site.  The permission was granted in October 2023 for a 5 bedroom property and detached garage of 4500 sq ft which includes many stunning design features, extensive glazing throughout to benefit from the outstanding views of the woodland and golf course, three metre high ceilings to the spacious, principal ground floor reception rooms and striking external finishes that have been carefully chosen to be sympathetic to the woodland setting and position in an AONB on the edge of the North Wessex Downs with its extensive seams of flint.
The property is highly sustainable by design and incorporates the latest technologies to minimise carbon footprint and on-going running costs including air source heat pump, mechanical heat recovery ventilation, underfloor heating and photovoltaic solar panels with battery storage.
The grounds cover 0.7 of an acre in this peaceful woodland-edge location with mature hedging to all four boundaries and many mature trees. There are stunning views from the property of the ancient woodland to the east, the award-winning golf course to the west and the substantial garden to the south.
The property is located in a walker’s paradise with several walks immediately adjacent to the property through the National Trust woodland and along some spectacular hillsides with views of the Thames Valley. There is just one neighbouring property, a quintessential, charming, English thatched cottage which sits some 90 metres to the south and which is hidden from view by the boundary hedges and trees.

EXISTING PROPERTY
There is an existing fully functional three bedroom bungalow in one corner of the grounds that can be retained until the new property is built and that could either form accommodation for a self-builder (eliminating the need to rent during the build) or act as a welfare and storage facility for a builder (reducing building costs).   Consisting of 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 reception rooms and kitchen.

Further details of the planning permissions obtained can be found below:

• 23/01390/FUL
• Granted October 2023

1 - Gross internal floor area of the ground floor of the house is c.2900 sq ft
2 - Gross internal floor area of the first floor of the house is c.1200 sq ft
3 - Gross internal floor area of the garage is c.400 sq ft
4 - Total gross internal floor area across all three is therefore c.4500 sq ft

Please see the West Berkshire Council planning portal for full details of the planning permission, quoting the above planning references, or enquire at the offices of Warmingham & Co.

SERVICES:
Mains water and electricity are both available on site. Current house has oil central heating connected.  Efficient septic tank drainage.

Technology: GigaClear ultrafast broadband, up to 900mbs, available for connection

GENERAL INFORMATION

Postcode: RG8 9RB

Council Tax Band on current property: Band F

Local Authority: West Berkshire District Council

THE ARCHITECT

Ian Norman Architects
Established over 25 years ago, their specialism is in environmentally conscious architectural design and they create beautiful sustainable buildings for the 21st Century. With over two decades experience in Newbury, they know the Berkshire and Hampshire building sector intimately.

DIRECTIONS
From our offices in the centre of Goring-on-Thames, turn left and proceed over the river bridge up to the crossroads at Streatley-on-Thames. At the crossroads, head straight over and up Streatley Hill, whereby having just passed National Trust owned Lardon Chase car park on the right, take the first turning left approximately 20 metres after, on to a private gravel road, serving two properties only, and Long Close will be found approximately 50 metres along off on the right-hand side.