The Avenue, Bletsoe, Bedfordshire, MK44

MODERN FAMILY LIVING IN HISTORIC VILLAGE, WITH SUBSTANTIAL SUMMERHOUSE AND SCOPE FOR MULTIGENERATIONAL LIVING

An appealing, 4-double bedroom family home, once single storey and now with two lovely suites upstairs added to its original bedrooms. With both open-plan and separate, light-filled living spaces, not to mention a super summerhouse in a garden that’s well over half an acre, there’s plenty of versatile room for all members of the family of whatever age. With a detached garage and extensive gravelled parking, the cars are well catered for, too. Never mind the famous one, this No 10, just ten minutes from the county town of Bedford in the lovely, rural North Bedfordshire village of Bletsoe, is the place to be.

Bedford’s railway station is only six miles away, from where fast trains reach London in 40 minutes; the county town is also home to the world-renowned, Harpur Trust private schools. Bletsoe’s catchment primary school is in nearby Riseley, while the secondary school and another primary school, along with surgery, shops, Mill Theatre and farm shop, is in the larger village of Sharnbrook just on the other side of the A6. The main road provides speedy access to a choice of supermarkets just 5 miles away, and to Luton Airport, less than 30 miles away.

Bletsoe is packed with historic interest, with over twenty listed buildings, including the Grade II* Bletsoe Castle, where Margaret Beaufort, the mother of Henry VII, the first Tudor king, was born, and the glorious 13th century Church of St Mary, which is open for regular services.

The church, the village hall and the playing fields are all within a few hundred yards of your new home, and all play an active part in village life, creating a close community atmosphere. Beyond the village hall, your dog will be able to take you on miles of super walks. Cyclists can also look forward to lovely countryside rides.

Wander down the lane in the other direction and cross the main road to the 17th century Falcon Inn, where the garden runs down to the River Great Ouse and where the renowned Victorian poet, Edward FitzGerald would stay and write. He described the coaching inn as: “the cleanest, the sweetest, the civilist, the quietest, the liveliest and the cheapest that was ever built or conducted.” It’s still delighting villagers and visitors to this day. And along with so much more, it’s on the doorstep of No10.

MORE ABOUT THE PROPERTY 

From either end of the Avenue, whether between fields and paddocks or community orchards and gorgeous old houses, the approach to your new home cannot help but lift the spirits.

No 10 has seen many changes since its ‘50s beginnings, developing and growing with the fortunate families who have lived here. The home has been shaped to suit different needs over the years, such that it’s now as suited to the babe in arms as to the teenager and the elderly parent.

Those who prefer or need single-storey living have that option, with two bedrooms still downstairs, and the original bathroom converted into a separate shower room for one of the bedrooms, and a cloakroom opposite the other.

Each of the lovely, sloping-ceilinged bedrooms upstairs is full of character, and has its own bath or shower, your main bedroom with both; and each has built-in wardrobes and a lovely outlook to wake up to, whether over the tree-lined gardens or to horses grazing in their paddocks.

Chat with guests, get lost in the latest bestseller, or curl up in front of the television in either the sitting room or the snug. Breakfast and relax with coffee either in the garden room or in the hub of the home, where you can cook, dine and entertain in one super space, which extends out through French doors to the terrace come summertime.

And to the gardens, surrounded by native hedging and bird-filled maple, spruce and sycamore. Something for everyone: a choice of relaxing and eating areas, in sun or shade; the summerhouse where you can gather around the firepit with an evening glass of wine; extensive lawns for play, and a copse, where the children can escape to their dens. Harvest your own apples, pears and quince from prolific fruit trees; grapes, raspberries and blueberries from the sleeper beds.

As the drought dwindles, a shallow stream wends its way beneath the little bridge and the arch of sweet-scented honeysuckle. Butterflies flutter over cascading wisteria blooms. Bees buzz around beautiful roses, dahlias, unusual cosmos and rose mallow. Delightful!