Garden property is breath of fresh air (From The Oxford Times)

Garden property is breath of fresh air

9:45am Thursday 5th January 2012

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A Grade-II listed, two-bedroom property was once the coachman’s house of Chesterton Lodge, near Bicester.

Chesterton Court was built in the 1890s as a stable block for the manor and was restored in 2006.

The Garden House, one of eight properties ranged around the original courtyard, includes a sitting room with wood-burning stove plus a kitchen/dining room. Upstairs are two bedrooms, both en suite and other features include high ceilings, oak flooring and off-road parking. The garden includes a lawn, terrace, ornamental hedges as well as a summerhouse and is bordered by a Grade II- listed stone wall.

The property is on the market because owner Helene Barratt, 64, is retiring to France where she plans to renovate a property. Mrs Barratt, a civil servant, said: “Chesterton Lodge was built for a local banker but after World War II, it became Audley House prep school and was later sold and its name changed to Bruern Abbey Prep School.

“Chesterton Court was one of the grandest stable blocks ever and was arranged around a courtyard.

When I moved here five years ago, I set about transforming what was a Victorian rubbish dump into a landscaped garden.”

Now, Mrs Barratt, who is recovering from cancer, plans to take paying guests at her French property to offer sanctuary to people recovering from the disease.

The Garden House, number 1, Chesterton Court is on the market for £350,000. For more information, or to arrange a viewing, contact agents Knight Frank on 01865 790077 or visit knightfrank.com