Lower Rockes, Butleigh, Somerset

This exquisite Grade II-listed house comprises a 17th-century farmhouse and a refined Georgian extension. It spans over 4,200 sq ft and has been lovingly restored by the owners to create a series of calm, considered and bright spaces arranged around a beautiful courtyard garden. Textural finishes, including polished plaster walls and concrete worktops, complement hearty original period features throughout.



Setting the Scene



Lower Rockes has had many lives since it was commissioned by the squire of Butleigh Court in around 1671. The house was extended in the early 19th century, resulting in a beautiful Georgian wing with a classically symmetrical façade.



It has been home to many interesting characters, including, at one stage, a great maker of cheddar cheese named Robert Neville-Grenville. In 1893, he set up a cheesemaking school and taught from the farm. A hatch in the kitchen ceiling would have housed a winch to transport the cheese between where it was produced and stored.



The Grand Tour



A sympathetic renovation has allowed the weathered, traditional materials of the house’s original bones retain their charm. The kitchen, hunkered under beams, has all the warmth of a traditional farmhouse with refined, contemporary updates. Shaker-style cabinetry is topped with polished concrete and granite worktops, and an adaptable central island provides extra space. Still in situ, an original bread oven sits tucked away in an alcove.



The kitchen’s hearth forms part of a back-to-back fireplace with the dining room, which has a wood-burning stove.Long elm beams traverse the ceiling, and two casement windows usher in light.



Georgian elegance is exuded by the house’s later wing, where high ceilings meet a delicate interior palette. Here, two reception rooms have been painted in a dusty pink; the drawing room is centred around a marble fireplace surround with an unusual crescent-shaped hearth. Glazed doors open to the garden, filtering westerly light through the leaves of a fig tree outside. The snug, by comparison, is of more intimate proportions and has a romantic window seat.



The house has four bedrooms on the first floor, including an impressively proportioned suite with triple-aspect windows. Its en suite bathroom has a clean, crisp feel, with pale-pink metro tiles and a walk-in shower. A separate bathroom has a consciously traditional feel, with a timber-clad bath, painted pale pink. On the uppermost floor is the spectacular primary room, with exposed beams and a dramatic en suite finished with a tactile plaster finish.



The Great Outdoors



The house is framed by beautifully planted borders where brightly coloured roses grow. Mature trees stud the ground, including eucalyptus, wisteria and magnolia, along with fruit-bearing varieties like apple, quince and pear. A partly covered terrace runs the length of the old wing of the house and is a wonderful spot for hosting.



Three cars can be comfortably parked on the gravel driveway. There are also three outbuildings: a large boiler room, a separate space currently used as an office and a garden shed.



Out and About



Butleigh is a pretty village, ideally located for a wide network of walking and cycling routes, including through the nearby Mendip Hills, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It also offers a good provision of locally grown organic vegetables and dairy produce, and there is also a village shop, church, village green and cricket ground.



Glastonbury town centre is just five miles away; the Glastonbury Festival site is also within 15 minutes by car. In addition, the independent shops, cafés and restaurants of Wells and Frome are nearby, along with Bruton, which is home to Hauser and Wirth, Osip and The Old Pharmacy. The Newt is also easily reached.



There are excellent state and private schools locally, including Wells Cathedral School, Millfield Senior and Prep Schools, Downside, All Hallows and Bruton. Direct train services to London Paddington are accessible via Castle Cary, a 20-minute drive away, with a journey time of 86 minutes. The national motorway network is via the A303 (M3), and Bristol Airport is easily reached in around 30 minutes by car. Bristol International Airport is approximately 50 miles from the house.



Council Tax Band: G