EPC band: C



The Orchard House

Completed in 2011, the Orchard House is a unique and beautifully-presented contemporary house, designed by award-winning architects, Studio Octopi. Offering approximately 1,550 square feet of living space, it is located just off the historic Green in Calne’s Heritage Quarter. Despite being within five minutes’ walk from the town centre, it is highly secluded, standing in its own grounds at the end of a short lane. Designed as an eco-house, it is double-glazed throughout and insulated with sheep’s wool. An energy-efficient under-floor heating system is powered by an air-source heat pump. It has a living roof, planted with sedum and a rainwater harvesting system providing water for the garden. The house is wood framed with bleached oak doors; the lower storey is lime rendered and the upper clad in locally-grown, sweet chestnut slats.

The house is approached through a stone gateway then past a small orchard and along a sweeping driveway which are part of the property. A solid oak garden door leads through a high stone wall with mediaeval origins, to a secret front garden.

Inside the tall oak front door, the huge, open-plan living area is a stunning double-height space, surrounded by floor to ceiling windows in a light-filled garden setting on both sides, with an inset Dutch-made wood burning stove at the centre of the seating area. The kitchen, partially separated from the living area by built-in shelving, features hand-built wooden units with custom-fitted doors.

On the ground floor, the large principal bedroom looks through a glass door onto the garden and is fitted with wardrobes; it features a spacious ensuite bathroom, with bath, shower above, basin and WC. Also on the ground floor, are a study/additional sitting room with built-in desk and drawer units, and a utility room housing laundry and drying facilities. There is also a separate guest shower room and a library corridor with built-in shelving. To add to the sense of space, all doors are full height to the ceiling. Two large sliding doors can be drawn to close off the entrance hall, library and principal bedroom.

Off the upper floor gallery which overlooks the living area, is a second bedroom with ensuite shower room and a third double bedroom. There is additional extensive under-stair storage.

The current owner is a wheelchair-user and the house has been designed to be totally accessible, with level access to both house and garden and a concealed wheelchair and passenger lift to the upper floor.

Externally

The house sits on a generous plot of about 5,899 square feet, The garden, designed by the owner and by Christine Whatley of Sylvan Studio () won for Christine the British Association of Landscape Industries award for Design Excellence and was featured on Alan Titchmarsh's "Love Your Garden". It has a small apple orchard, a parking area for several cars and two separate inner walled courtyard gardens, fully visible through the floor to ceiling windows of the house. The courtyards are accessed by tall bleached oak garden doors, creating a private haven within the grounds. The gardens are beautifully planted with Spring flowers, perennials and evergreen topiary which gives it structure and visual interest, even in winter. In addition to the long-lived apple trees is an ancient magnolia tree at the entrance; several other fruit trees add height.

There is a large shed and a smaller enclosed storage area and working area at the back of the house.

Calne

Calne is known as a ‘Town of Discovery’. The scientist and radical philosopher, Joseph Priestley, discovered oxygen in 1774 while living in the town and working for the Marquis of Shelbourne at nearby Bowood House. The Dutch scientist, Jan Ingen Housz who discovered photosynthesis, was a friend of Priestley’s and Lord Shelbourne and also lived in the town, as did the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in the early C19th. It is a small friendly town with many societies and community organisations. There is an annual arts and music festival in the autumn which celebrated its fiftieth year in 2024, a large park leading to rural bridle paths and a small town-centre ‘pocket park’ that hosts numerous community events at which it runs its own pop-up café. The charming ancient Green and the surrounding streets contain Elizabethan, Georgian and early Victorian houses, most of which are listed. There is a town-centre branch of Sainsbury’s and a large Tesco on the outskirts. The numerous retail shopping areas and supermarkets of Chippenham, Devizes and Marlborough are within a few minutes’ drive, as are Bowood House and the stone circle at Avebury, both great locations for country walks.

The Orchard House is situated within walking distance of local schools, including the well-regarded Priestley Primary School, Kingsbury Green Academy secondary school and the renowned girls’ boarding school, St Mary’s, with its co-located preparatory school, St Margaret’s.

It is easy to access the M4 in both directions. The nearest station is at Chippenham (about 6 miles) which has a large car park. It is about 10 minutes to Bath by train, half an hour to Bristol and about an hour and 10 minutes to Paddington.

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Whilst we make enquiries with the Seller to ensure the information provided is accurate, Yopa makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to the statements contained in the particulars which should not be relied upon as representations of fact. All representations contained in the particulars are based on details supplied by the Seller. Your Conveyancer is legally responsible for ensuring any purchase agreement fully protects your position. Please inform us if you become aware of any information being inaccurate.

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Should a purchaser(s) have an offer accepted on a property marketed by Yopa, they will need to undertake an identification check and asked to provide information on the source and proof of funds. This is done to meet our obligation under Anti Money Laundering Regulations (aml) and is a legal requirement. We use a specialist third party service together with an in-house compliance team to verify your information. The cost of these checks is £70 +VAT per purchase, which is paid in advance, when an offer is agreed and prior to a sales memorandum being issued. This charge is non-refundable under any circumstances.