Location
Bay House occupies a secluded location in the heart of this pretty and sought after Dorset village.
Iwerne Minster is situated about 6.5 miles north of the Georgian market town of Blandford Forum, offering excellent amenities including main supermarkets and a branch of M&S Food, and a similar distance south of the Saxon town of Shaftesbury which offers further amenities.
The village has a parish church, St Mary’s, a local pub, a village shop and Post Office that also stocks meat from the Ludwell Butcher.
Renowned Clayesmore School is in the village itself and there are many other notable schools in the wider area including Bryanston, Bryanston Prep, Sandroyd and Hanford. State schools for children of all ages are available in Blandford, Shaftesbury and surrounding villages.
Trains run from Gillingham or Tisbury to London Waterloo. Excellent walking riding and cycling can be enjoyed in the beautiful surrounding countryside of the Cranborne Chase, an AONB, and in The New Forest National Park to the east. Poole Harbour and Sandbanks beach for sailing and watersports are about 22 miles to the south.
Description
Bay House is a unique and charming character house, understood to have period origins as part of the adjoining Chantry House. The main house is thought to be Victorian, and was extended in the 1970’s. The house has most appealing elevations of red brick and colourwashed render under a tiled roof, enhanced by a variety of small paned and leaded windows including some fine sash windows on the south side. The house offers generous accommodation over two floors and features two light and beautifully proportioned reception rooms which overlook the garden. The house has the benefit of wood pellet fed biomass central heating, two Jetmaster fires, and an oil fired Aga in the kitchen.
The front door opens from a covered porch into the entrance hall, with quarry tiled floor. The elegant drawing room has a marble fire surround with inset Jetmaster fire, herringbone parquet flooring, and views over the garden through a pair of French doors that lead onto the terrace. A door opens into the similarly impressive dining room, also having a painted fire surround with Jetmaster fire, a feature coffered ceiling, fitted book shelving, and windows and a casement door overlooking the garden. The kitchen/breakfast room has a bay window and is fitted with a range of units, a sink, electric hob with cooker hood over and an oil fired Aga. Leading off is a scullery with a further sink, and plumbing for a dishwasher, and a walk in larder. Also on the ground floor is the utility/ boot room with a flagstone floor, the Grant biomass pellet fired boiler, plumbing for a washing machine, together with a WC and basin.
From the hall a staircase leads up to the landing with large walk in airing/ linen cupboard. The main suite includes a bright bedroom with double aspect windows, and an en suite bathroom/dressing room with freestanding bath, basin, WC, a fitted wardrobe, eaves storage and door to the airing cupboard. There are four further bedrooms, three doubles and a large single, together with the family bathroom.
Outside
A brick pillared and gated entrance opens into the shingle driveway and front garden which is walled to form a courtyard, and provides parking for several cars. There is a large brick Garage with a pair of timber doors, and a brick floor, and at the rear a garden store. The main area of the garden is at the rear and enjoys a southerly aspect, with a good size terrace running across the rear of the house perfect for summer entertaining. The garden is mainly laid to lawn with a variety of specimen trees including apple, pear and cherry and shrubs, and established hedging and brick walls providing seclusion. There is further area of garden to the front with a timber store housing the wood pellets for the central heating.
Directions
Iwerne Minster lies on the A350. At the war memorial on this road, turn up Tower Hill, and then take the second turning on the right into Hobgoblin. Drive down the hill, past the church and turning for Church Road, and the entrance to Bay House is the next driveway on the left at the end of the brick and flint wall.