Location

High Wycombe 2 miles, Marlow 6.5 miles, Beaconsfield 8 miles, Heathrow (T5) 23 miles, central London (Baker Street) 31 miles. All distances are approximate.

Downley is a village on the edge of High Wycombe with two primary schools, a selection of shops and two public houses. The village benefits from an active community with events including the Downley Village Festival and a torchlight procession on Bonfire Night across Downley Common with its 22 hectares of woods and grassland.

High Wycombe enjoys an illustrious heritage of furniture making and the creative arts, which is thriving to this day with its museum, theatre and annual film and jazz festivals. High Wycombe station is about two miles away, with a regular train line to London (Marylebone) and the town offers a wide variety of shops and leisure facilities. High Wycombe hosts a rugby club, running club, bowling club and in The Rye, an outdoor Lido swimming pool, a cricket club, tennis club and a members' gym. Both Marlow and Beaconsfield offer a superb range of retailers, with an eclectic mix of local independent and national names. The property abuts the National Trust Hughenden Manor and Park, in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The area is renowned for its choice and standard of education, with Buckinghamshire being one of the last counties to maintain the traditional grammar school system.   Locally there is Downley Primary School and grammar schools include Wycombe High School for Girls, The Royal Grammar School for Boys and John Hampden Grammar School for Boys. There are also a number of independent schools including Godstowe, Pipers Corner and Wycombe Abbey to name a few.

Description

Manor Farm House is a 13th or 14th century hall house, and given a major facelift in the early 18th century giving the house its distinctly Queen Anne/Georgian appearance. The property was originally part of the Hughenden estate and the former home of Benjamin Disraeli's nephew and sole heir. Set within private gardens of about three acres, Manor Farm House is surrounded by National Trust land, commanding exceptional views overlooking the parkland of Hughenden Valley and the Disraeli Monument. Manor Farm House exudes period features, but of particular note are the early 18th century painted panels discovered in the principal bedroom and the crown post roof, recognised as an important architectural feature of the medieval period.

The accommodation flows effortlessly across two floors and is well laid out for both formal entertaining and family living. The main features include excellently proportioned rooms with an elegant drawing room and formal dining room featuring oak flooring and period fireplaces. The drawing room is dual aspect, heavily panelled and overlooks the gardens. The heart of the quarry tiled reception/dining hall is its magnificent, carved staircase to the first floor. The hall is spacious with a fireplace and access to a good sized cellar. The generous and vaulted kitchen/breakfast/family room is a later addition and provides an open plan and sociable space, with ample room for both a seating and dining area, with French doors extending the living space into the garden in the summer months and giving views across the valley. The kitchen itself is a hand made Plain English kitchen with a three oven Aga with electric companion. Completing the accommodation on this floor is an office, fully fitted utility room and a guest cloakroom.

The first floor incorporates three well-proportioned bedrooms, a reading nook and a family bathroom, all featuring period fireplaces. The principal bedroom, with its beautifully panelled walls, enjoys a fully fitted dressing room leading through to a spacious en suite bathroom. On the top floor are three further bedrooms and a family bathroom.

Manor Farm House takes full advantage of its superb, elevated position with expansive lawns and spectacular views providing an enchanting backdrop to the property. A terrace area adjoins the kitchen/breakfast/family room providing an ideal outside entertaining area for family and friends. Set back from the road the property is approached via a brick and flint walled driveway with parking for multiple vehicles and leading to a stable block, with four stables. About 2.95 acres in all.