Ditchling Road, Brighton

**Guide Price £1,350,000-£1,400,000**

Open Days:

Friday the 25th of April
Saturday the 26th of April
Between 12pm-2pm

A wealth of period features, generous sun-filled rooms and views over the city to the sea all come together to create this stunning, Victorian family home. It sits on one of Brighton’s famous hills, within easy walking distance of the North Laine Shopping District and both Brighton and London Road Stations. With two incredible reception rooms and five bedrooms, there is ample space for a family to grow, close to local schools with exemplary reputations. Internally, the aesthetic appeal of this home is immediately impressive as the current owners have been careful to retain the home’s period character and natural features while combining them with a contemporary palette, fixtures and fittings. The garden is particularly spacious form somewhere so close to the city, being both private and sunny due to its open southerly aspect and elevation on the hill.

Exterior:
This house is a jewel in Roundhill’s crown. It is perfectly positioned enjoying open views from all three floors as it sits elevated and set back from the road giving it an air of grandeur. Border walls and a neat hedgerow allow complete privacy from the street, where steps lead up to the front garden lawn and patio close to French doors leading outside from the sitting room.
Externally, the house is immaculate in white, bearing the classic plasterwork features of the Victorian era. Terracotta tiles pave the way to a pilastered front door which opens to an elegant entrance hall where the beauty and sheer scale of the house become apparent. Sanded and varnished original floorboards flow along the hall and into the sitting room, while walls are painted in stylish slate below the dado rail, decorating wall panels and skirting boards. High above your head, intricate cornicing runs along the perimeter of superbly high ceilings which can be found throughout this floor.

Sitting room:
To the front of the property, the sitting room is a space for all seasons with an open fire for warm and cosy winters, or full height French doors to link with the front garden during summer. Period features are abundant within the grand fireplace, ceiling decoration and picture rails, all picked out in white against shades of grey for the walls, warmed by the honey-wood tones of the floor. There is ample space for relaxation in here, enjoying the vista over the city to the sea.

Kitchen, Dining & Family Room:
Breath-taking in scale and style, this space is a wonderful surprise, stepping through from the entrance hall into the dining area. Having been extended out and knocked-through, this room now forms a large L-shape spanning the rear of the house, seamlessly opening to the garden at its easterly elevation via a wall of bi-folding doors.
Bearing many original period features, the formal dining area has space to seat eight or ten aside the woodburning stove, set within an original mantelpiece. Metro hearth tiles pick out the blue tones in the distressed plaster wall, revealing years of history while complementing the space perfectly.
Moving through to the kitchen, blues have again been used to complement the warm wood floors and metallic gold door furniture. An island creates an informal social space to seat three below pendant lighting while generous sofas and chairs allow the family to kick back and relax in front of the wall mounted TV. This is a room which invites entertaining and festive family gatherings, both inside and out.
Within Shaker cabinetry, the dishwasher is integrated, leaving space for a range gas cooker and an American fridge freezer, while open shelves are adorned with glassware, crockery and plants.

Garden:
A magical size for families with young children, the garden has ample space on the lawn for children’s play equipment without it dominating. Close to the house, a large slate patio offers space for dining alfresco while the lawn is ideal for sunbathing and picnics. The original, tall flint and brick walls offer privacy from neighbouring homes to the north, while the sun can stream in from the south due to the position on the hill. Deep flower beds form a kitchen garden and sweet fruit trees bring dappled shade in high season.

Ground Floor Shower Room & First Floor Family Bathroom:
Completing the ground floor, the shower room is spacious and light with stylish Moroccan floor tiles and brick tiling in white around the walk-in rainfall shower. Shelving within the original hearth is ideal for towels and toiletries while the gas boiler is discreetly tucked away in the cupboard.
Upstairs, the family bathroom is the epitome of luxury with an organically curved, freestanding bathtub with space for two. The basin echoes its soft shape, inlaid to a wooden washstand, while the wet-room shower is streamlined and glazed.

Principal Bedroom:
Mirroring the size and shape of the sitting room below it, the principal bedroom spans the front of the property, enjoying sensational views over roof and treetops to the sea, taking in St Bartholomew’s Church, Brighton Station and the i360 rising above it all into big, open skies. With sash windows to the south and west, the sunsets are magnificent and on Bonfire Night you have your own personal firework display. Two built-in wardrobes flank another original fireplace, offering plenty of clothes and shoe storage for two. Even with a king size bed and several freestanding pieces of bedroom furniture the floor space is not compromised.

First Floor & Second Floor Bedrooms:
Peacefully positioned to the rear of the first floor are twinned rooms, side by side, looking out over the garden. These rooms are ideal for siblings wishing for some independence while remaining close to each other and their parents. Soothing tones on the walls and verdant views allow for a restful night’s sleep.
Elevated further on the top floor, bedrooms four and five are ultimately tranquil, tucked away from the hubbub of family life. This makes them ideal as work or study spaces, or as a guest bedroom, perhaps. There is a large storage room on this floor, alongside ample eaves storage, so the potential is there to create a third bathroom en suite which would add value in a house of this calibre.

Education:
Primary: Downs Infant and Junior Schools
Secondary: Varndean and Dorothy Stringer, Cardinal Newman RC
Private: Brighton College, Lancing College Prep

Good to Know:
With a palpable sense of community and a striking topography of Victorian terraces, it’s no wonder that Roundhill Conservation Area has retained its popularity over the years. Along with a highly favoured school catchment and excellent transport links, it has become the go-to place to live; particularly for Londoners moving to the coast, looking for an improved work-life balance.
This incredible home is just a short walk from everything this vibrant coastal city has to offer, including theatres, museums, gyms, restaurants and the beach. The A23/A27 and stations are also within easy reach, for those requiring fast links to the universities, Gatwick or London on a daily or weekly basis.