Priory Road, Castle Acre, King's Lynn, Norfolk, PE32

A handsome vicarage in excellent order.

Description

The Old Vicarage is a handsome Victorian vicarage, formerly part of the Holkham Estate, enjoying a south facing position within the historical village of Castle Acre. The house, built in 1876 with later additions, has been the subject of a thorough programme of renovation, notably with the replacement of windows with attractive bespoke casements, re-plumbing and wiring, new bathrooms and the creation of a superb open plan kitchen, dining, living space making this an old home that is fit for modern day living.

The house is now one of style and practicality, a pleasing mix of formal and informal living. Elegant principal reception rooms are at the front of the house, with the double aspect drawing room with glazed doors out to the south terrace and a marble fire surround to the open fire, and the dining room again with glazed doors to the south, and a fire place. These are fine entertaining rooms, linked by a Victorian tiled hallway.

The focal point of the house, following a significant transformation from the original house layout, is the expansive kitchen/dining/living area. Effectively encompassing three rooms, there is a great sense of light and space, with tall ceilings, roof lantern and west facing glazing. The living area is particularly spacious, with French doors to a terrace, whilst the dining space has plenty of room for even the largest of dining tables. The kitchen area is bespoke, with fitted cabinetry and built in appliances, a large central island unit and a cold pantry, together with kitchen store room. This fine space can be reached from the main hall, the boot room and directly from the rear courtyard, so really is the hub of the house and ideal for everyday family living, casual suppers, and cosy evenings.

Whilst there is a formal entrance to the house, the most used is a second entrance into a boot room, with bespoke joinery and plenty of room for shoes and coats, conveniently adjoining the utility room which provides functionality. A useful study, formerly used by the Bishops of Kings Lynn, is understandably well positioned to see who is coming up the drive, whilst there is also a wine cellar and a WC at either end of the house.

Further remodelling took place on the first floor, to create a significantly more user friendly layout, together with elevating the lifestyle of the house. A principal bedroom enjoys bespoke wardrobes either side of a fireplace, and an en suite bath/shower room that can be accessed from a further bedroom or which could become a dressing room to form an entire bedroom suite. There are further three double bedrooms, all of which have their own bathroom, with a further WC.

To the north of the house are the traditional outbuildings, which have been converted to ancillary accommodation. Comprising a kitchen, living room, a bedroom with en suite bathroom and further bedroom and shower room, the building has under floor heating, and is mostly complete to a level where the next custodian simply needs to add their own choice of flooring, and decoration, together with fitting out the en suite bathroom, (the shower room is fully fitted already).

Part of the renovation included switching from oil heating, to Air Source Heat Pumps, with separate units to both the house and the annexe. There is a back up system served by gas.

Outside
The Old Vicarage is approached through a curved brick wall entrance gate onto a gravelled driveway , sweeping up the house to a turning circle adjoining the house and continuing on to the garage and outbuildings. There is wiring for an EV charger.

Despite the village location, the gardens enjoy privacy thanks to mature boundaries.

The gardens are wonderfully mature, with fine mature trees including lime and beech, with established hedging providing many points of interest. The principal gardens are to the south with expanse of lawn, with a gravelled path, lavender beds and steps down to the main lawn, with this area of the garden enjoying a fine view across to St James The Great church. The gardens continue round to the west, with further lawns, attractive mellow brick south facing wall stretching along the northern boundary, and an attractive patio area ideal for outside entertaining.

At the end of the annexe building is a practical workshop/potting shed.

The grounds in all extend to 1.2 acres (est).

Location

Castle Acre is one of Norfolk’s destination villages. A historic settlement, the ruined Castle Acre Castle sits on the east of the village, whilst the more intact but still ruined Priory is to the west. The village is well served with an excellent village store and post office, the popular ‘Wittles’ restaurant/café, two public houses, fish and chips shop, bookstore, primary school and a playing field. There is a network of footpaths from the village, including the Peddars Way and Rebellion Way, popular with both walkers and cyclists, and paths along the River Nar to the south of the village.

The nearby market town of Swaffham has a good range of shopping facilities including a Waitrose. Local villages close by include Great Massingham, with the award winning Dabbling Duck public house, and the creative hub of West Acre, with a theatre, resident artists and gallery, garden nursery, brewery, public house and café.

The attractive North Norfolk coastal beaches of Holkham, Hustanton and Wells-next-the-Sea are situated to the north and there are golf clubs at Brancaster, Hunstanton, King’s Lynn, Dereham and Swaffham. There are rail links to London Kings Cross accessed at either Kings Lynn (13 miles) or Downham Market (17 miles), with a journey time of one hour thirty minutes.

Square Footage: 4,433 sq ft


Acreage: 1.12 Acres

Directions

Directions
Leave Swaffham on the A1065 to Fakenham. About one mile out of the town take the second left turning, signed to Castle Acre, Castle & Priory. Follow this road into the village and up the hill through the castle gates and turn immediately left into the High Street. Continue until the church is on the left with the entrance to The Old Vicarage on the right.

The what3words unique location code for the entrance is; crusaders.slope.affirming.

Additional Info

Services
Mains water, electricity and gas. Drainage to mains and septic tank.

Local Authority
King's Lynn and West Norfolk
Council Tax Band G

Fixtures & Fittings
All fixtures and fittings including fitted carpets and curtains are specifically excluded from the sale, but may be available in addition, subject to separate negotiation.

Viewings
Strictly by appointment with Savills. If there is any point which is of particular importance to you, we invite you to discuss this with us, especially before you travel to view the property.