Sycamore Close, Oadby, LE2

Situated on a quiet cul-de-sac off Knighton Rise, this five-bedroom detached family home extends to over 3,000 sq ft of living accommodation. Built in the early 1970s and owned by the same family for over 25 years, it is a red-brick detached house with the characteristic staggered, stepped plan of the period. The double garage projects beneath its own shallow gable, the entrance is recessed behind a tiled canopy and the bay to the right steps forward again, giving the façade a distinctly three-dimensional composition. Occupying a plot of just over a quarter of an acre, the house has been extended at either end and remodelled through its centre, creating a sequence of connected rooms with a stronger relationship to the garden. Importantly, its original character has been retained and developed rather than stripped away. Bespoke joinery, enriched plasterwork, hand-painted decoration and faux-marbre finishes give the interiors an unusually individual quality.

The entrance hall runs through the depth of the house, bringing daylight deep into the plan through glazed panels around the composite door. A study and cloakroom sit off the hall, while a second WC is positioned beyond the kitchen and utility room. The principal reception room occupies the western side of the house and extends into a generous three-sided bay. Glazed doors connect it with the dining room and conservatory, allowing the rooms to be opened into one another. A classical white-painted chimneypiece, polished stainless-steel fire surround and black granite hearth form the focal point, complemented by fitted fretwork radiator casings. The conservatory is an expressive five-sided addition, with a faceted glazed roof rising to a central apex. Painted rafters, arched upper lights and pale-stone hexagonal tiles give it a character distinct from the principal rooms, while translucent roof glazing creates a soft, diffuse light. The dining room sits between the sitting room and kitchen and continues the decorative language with an elaborate anthemion-and-bead cornice and fitted timber radiator casing.

At the centre of the house, a wide segmental plaster arch connects the bespoke Smallbone kitchen and breakfast room. Deliberately free of moulding, the arch reads as an architectural opening rather than decoration. Hand-painted in-frame cabinetry, reeded pilasters and dentil detailing are paired with dark speckled granite and handmade mottled-sage glazed tiles. A diagonal cream-and-sage chequerboard floor unifies the space. The kitchen leads through to a well-appointed utility room, second cloakroom and the double garage, while glazed doors from the breakfast area open into the bright garden room. Here the mood changes completely: a faceted seven-light bay wraps the room, with wide pale-oak boards and deep blue-green walls providing a restrained counterpoint to the more decorative spaces at the front. The glazing brings the surrounding planting close to the room, creating the feeling of sitting among the trees.

The L-shaped landing is unusually generous, with enough space for a sofa and natural light arriving from windows at either end. The bedrooms continue the house's individual approach to decoration, with schemes ranging from coral and deep teal to navy, mushroom and soft blue-green.

The principal bedroom occupies the front of the house and incorporates an extensive run of bespoke cream-painted joinery, including reeded pilasters, arched glazed cupboards and an arched dressing niche. The adjoining en-suite is particularly distinctive, with black-green faux-marbre, yellow veining, ebonised fluted pilasters and arched mirrors creating an almost theatrical interior. The remaining bedrooms are individually fitted, with deep-blue joinery to bedroom three and buttermilk cabinetry and hand-decorated coral walls with gold sunflower motifs to bedroom four. Bedroom three has direct access to the family bathroom, as well as access from the landing, creating a useful Jack-and-Jill arrangement. Bedroom five, with its canted bay and soft blue-green walls, is the quietest of the rooms and offers flexibility as a bedroom, study or nursery.

The family bathroom continues the faux-marbre theme, combining ochre sienna, black and grey painted finishes with ebonised fluted pilasters, an arched mirror and pale-stone flooring edged with a black key-fret border. Together with the two ground-floor WCs and two bedroom en-suites, it gives the house a particularly practical arrangement for family life.

Outside, the brick-paved drive provides generous parking and access to the double garage. The front garden is enclosed by mature planting, with acer, box, lavender, conifers and willow softening the relationship between house and close. At the rear, the architecture becomes more restrained. The original brick house is complemented by two distinct single-storey additions: the painted, translucent-roofed conservatory to the east and the more substantial garden room to the west, with a hipped tiled roof, wrapping casements, brick base and timber trellis detailing. A broad terrace runs across the rear of the house, retained by coursed buff stone and stepping down to the lawn. Its paving changes from irregular sandstone to rectangular slabs, creating several areas for sitting and dining. The garden itself is mature and deeply planted, with willow, silver birch, oak, cypress and shrub borders creating a sense of enclosure. A dry river bed of rounded cobbles, stepping stones and a secondary seating area add structure, while the established trees provide a changing backdrop throughout the year.

The home is an unusual example of a 1970s house that has been carefully evolved rather than erased. Its original stepped architecture remains legible, while the later additions, highly individual interiors and mature garden give it a character that is difficult to replicate.

Location:

Sycamore Close occupies a particularly discreet position on the Oadby side of the Stoneygate border, tucked away from the main road within a small private cul-de-sac. This is an established residential setting characterised by substantial detached houses, mature gardens and leafy streets, with properties in the close rarely offered to the open market. Oadby and neighbouring Stoneygate are among Leicester's most sought-after residential districts, combining a strong sense of community with easy access to the city. Independent shops, cafés and restaurants are found along the Allandale Road and Francis Street parades, while Oadby provides a broader range of everyday amenities. The area is particularly well regarded for its choice of schooling, including a number of highly regarded independent and state schools. There is an equally strong choice of leisure and sporting facilities nearby, including Leicestershire Golf Club, Leicester Racecourse and local tennis and squash clubs. Leicester city centre is readily accessible for its cultural, commercial and professional amenities, while the surrounding road network provides convenient connections to the M1 and M69. For commuters, Leicester's mainline railway station offers direct services to London St Pancras in a little over an hour. The combination of a private residential setting, established architecture, mature surroundings and proximity to both the city and wider transport network makes this one of Oadby's more desirable addresses.

Disclaimer

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