Elmsted, Ashford, Kent

An unlisted period cottage that has been significantly extended and thoughtfully linked to a barn to provide flexible and spacious accommodation.

Lower Hill Street Farm is a deceptively large farmhouse with a collection of comfortable, spacious rooms, set in the peaceful, rural parish of Elmsted in the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The gardens are designed and laid out for country living with 1.6 acres, sheltered by mature trees on the boundaries providing complete seclusion.

The family room provides a welcoming entrance to the home with its impressive open inglenook fireplace. Steps lead down to the substantial sitting room, which measures 24ft and features French doors opening to the garden, as well as panoramic windows providing plenty of natural light. Further reception rooms include the useful study and the formal dining room, which adjoins the kitchen.

The well-proportioned kitchen is fitted with painted farmhouse-style units and features a central island and a range cooker, while the ground floor boot room, utility room and large store provide further useful spaces.

There is a double bedroom on the ground floor with an en suite shower room, making it ideal for use as a guest bedroom. Upstairs there are a further five double bedrooms in two separate first-floor areas. A staircase from the sitting room leads to the principal bedroom, with its vaulted ceiling, exposed timber eaves, balcony and large en suite bathroom with a freestanding roll-top bathtub, and one other generous double bedroom, also with en suite. The second first-floor area, above the kitchen, features three double bedrooms, as well as a family bathroom with a bathtub and a separate shower unit. All five of the first-floor bedrooms benefit from built-in storage.

A five-bar wooden gate at the front of the property opens onto the gravel driveway, which is lined by tall hedgerows and offers plenty of parking space.

The front gardens have a raised area with various shrubs and mature trees, whilst to the rear and side of the house there are extensive further gardens and grounds. These include two patio areas for al fresco dining, and for enjoying the visiting birds and wildlife, with rolling lawns beyond, bordered by mature hedgerows and well-stocked beds, as well as an ornamental pond.

There is also an established vegetable garden with raised beds, a storage shed and a greenhouse. At the side there is a large grassy meadow, shaded by woodland and measuring more than 300ft.

The property lies in a peaceful and picturesque Kent Downs setting, close to the villages of Stowting and Bodsham and five miles from sought-after Wye. There are primary schools in Bodsham and Stowting, while Wye offers an excellent range of local services and shops, a regular farmers’ market and a station.

Comprehensive shopping, education and leisure facilities can be found in both Ashford and Canterbury. There are excellent further private and state sector schools in the area.

Road communications are excellent with access to the M20 close by. Ashford International provides High Speed services to London St Pancras from around 36 minutes. The area has good access to the Continent via the Port of Dover and the Eurotunnel at Folkestone