Church Street, Storrington, RH20 4

REF RM1298.

Forge House has watched Church Street change since the 1500s, and four centuries of that history are still written into the building: worn beams, uneven thresholds, a fireplace that has warmed generations of the families who have lived here. What's different now is the care successive owners have brought to it since, most visibly in a restoration back to its Victorian proportions that won the Sussex Heritage Trust's award in 2015.

The current owners have carried that standard forward rather than resting on it, most recently fitting solar panels to reduce the day-to-day running costs of a house that is already unusually efficient for its age. It reads as a home that has always been cared for, not merely occupied.

Through the cloakroom porch, the hallway opens up above you: double height and galleried, laid with the original Victorian floor tiles, with a clear line of sight through the glass kitchen door to late 16th century beams and the garden beyond them.

Ground Floor

Two reception rooms sit at the front of the house, each with a wood burning stove, underfloor heating and ceilings high enough to hang a proper light fitting without thinking twice. Both keep their period detail while being genuinely easy to heat and live in.

At the back of the house, the kitchen is where the day actually happens. Harvey Jones units with quartz worktops run the length of the room, centred on an island with a breakfast bar, a Quooker tap and an integrated Neff double oven and induction hob, alongside a Miele dishwasher and a wine fridge. A large skylight and an exposed ceiling beam sit above porcelain tiled flooring with underfloor heating beneath it, and bi-fold doors open the whole rear wall onto the garden in summer.

A shelved pantry, a proper utility room and a boot room off the side patio keep the boots, coats and washing machine out of the rooms you actually want to sit in, and there's a downstairs WC besides.

First Floor

Two of the four double bedrooms have their own en suite: the front bedroom with a roll top bath and separate shower, and a second double bedroom with its own dressing area besides. The other two, including the fourth bedroom floored in pine reclaimed from downstairs during the restoration, share a modern family bathroom with a large walk-in shower.

Home Office / Outbuilding

Set just off the house rather than within it, close at hand but self-contained, a substantial stone and brick outbuilding offers its own mezzanine level, equally suited to a home office, gym, studio or additional space for a growing family.

Storage

A full height boarded loft and a cellar with good head height provide genuine storage, a rare thing to find in a village house of this age.

Parking

A private parking space is accessed via the shared driveway beside the house, fitted with an electric vehicle charging point.

Outside

The walled garden runs back more than 100ft from the house: a large patio close to the doors, a further side patio, mature beds of roses, shrubs and small trees, a greenhouse and a smaller garden store.

Location

Storrington sits at the foot of the South Downs, with the South Downs Way itself running along the ridge above the village, the waymarked path continuing east to Sullington Hill, Highden Hill and on to Chanctonbury Ring. In the village there's a Waitrose, Costa Coffee and a run of independent shops. Joanna's Boutique Tearoom is the one for afternoon tea, and Antique 'N Eat does coffee and brunch upstairs among the antiques, most of which are for sale along with your breakfast. For an evening out, The Village Taverna on the High Street covers Greek and Mediterranean, and Chanctonbury Leisure Centre has a gym, studio classes and sports halls for anyone who wants more than the walk up to the Downs.

Storrington Primary holds a Good Ofsted rating, with children moving on to either The Weald or Steyning Grammar at secondary level. Pulborough station is a short drive away with a half-hourly service into London, and the A283 gets you to Worthing and the coast without much fuss.

Forge House sits in the conservation area, but it isn't a listed building, which matters if you ever want to shape it further for the next chapter.