Church Hill, Kington Magna, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8

The property has an almost perfect village setting at the foot of a hill leading up to the parish church. Built around 1750 as a farmhouse on the edge of a very small, pretty village, Georgianised a century later and then substantially enlarged in 1890, the house sits in just over one and a half acres of grounds that back onto miles of lush, unspoilt countryside. It is justifiably Grade II listed and is a lovely example of a good sized period farmhouse that has been extended over the years as the farm expanded and prospered. The original house was built of local stone and then extended in red brick towards the end of the Victorian era. Most recently it has been the wonderful, much loved family home of its current owners for the past 20 years. It has well laid out, large rooms with good ceiling heights along with many original architectural fittings such as tiled and parquet floors, beams, window seats and open fireplaces including an inglenook with a bread oven in the sitting room. The house is L-shaped, with its two main reception rooms either side of a central hallway overlooking the front garden. Tucked away off the rear hall is a delightful snug with built-in bookshelves, an open fireplace and windows overlooking the garden. It is also adjacent to the house's charming farmhouse kitchen, which has windows that catch both the morning and late afternoon light, a double butler's sink, painted units under timber work surfaces and a four-oven AGA. It also has a large, fully fitted laundry/boot room and a playroom/office tucked away at the back of the house. Upstairs off the part-galleried landing are five good double bedrooms, with views out over the village and surrounding countryside. The principal bedroom has its own adjacent, dedicated bath and shower room, whilst the remaining four bedrooms share a second bath and shower room. Should further accommodation be required the house has three lofts, which could be converted subject to obtaining any necessary consent. The largest of these stretches across the entire front of the house and panelling in the largest of the three would arguably indicate that it was once used as accommodation, probably for itinerant workers.

The House is approached via a gravelled drive leading to a parking area and double garage behind the house. Between the garage and the house is an attractive, brick-built former piggery with a side-mounted dovecote, that now serves as a store but could be re-purposed, subject to obtaining any necessary consents. At the front of the house is a low walled garden with further areas of lawn extending along both sides of the house. Tall yew hedging runs along the western side of one lawn providing both privacy and shelter to the rear terrace. Beyond the parking area is an extensive area of wild garden bound by trees and hedging. This area is extremely private and incorporates a mix of mature, broadleaf trees including silver birch, ash, lime, weeping willow and horse chestnut, a lovely area for outside dining and barbeques beside an apple and pear orchard and a further level area designed to accommodate a good sized marquee for weddings etc. The garden around the house and the grounds beyond are designed to be simply maintained and amount to about 1.6 acres (0.65 hectare).

Gaines House is situated on the edge of the small, peaceful village of Kington Magna, which is surrounded by the open, unspoilt countryside of the Blackmore Vale, also known as The Vale Of The Little Dairies. Due to its size the village only has a parish church and village hall but there is a convenience store, garage and traditional pub (The Ship Inn) five minutes' drive away in West Stour, along with another popular pub (The Stapleton Arms) in the neighbouring village of Buckhorn Weston. The nearby town of Gillingham has a range of shops including a Waitrose supermarket, as well as medical, dental and veterinary surgeries. For broader requirements Salisbury, Bath and Yeovil are all easily accessible. There are also good transport links nearby. These include the A30 and A303 and there are direct rail services from Gillingham to Waterloo (2 hours) and from Castle Cary to Paddington (90 minutes). Bristol and Exeter Airports are both just over an hour's drive away. The area is also blessed with a wide choice of schools for children of all ages from both the state and independent sectors. The latter includes Port Regis, Clayesmore, Hanford and the schools in Bruton and Sherborne.