7 bed detached house for sale

Tunstall, Kent ME9

Tunstall House is a splendid Grade I listed family home offering an array of outstanding rooms with high ceilings and an abundance of period features dating from the 17th century, including exposed timbers, panelled reception rooms, ornate cornicing and original fireplaces. The house is set behind a high wall with electric double gates opening to a walled courtyard. There are also a variety of period outbuildings together with a heated swimming pool. The surrounding land totals 13 acres, with meadows, beautiful mature trees, a wooded area and useful paddocks.

The porch opens into a stunning family room with panelled walls, exposed wooden floorboards and a grand, brick-built open fireplace. Two further reception rooms are set to the front of the house, including the snug – a cosy space where one can relax and unwind - and the sizeable drawing room, both with magnificent fireplaces, panelling and corniced ceilings. There are five further ground floor reception rooms, including two studies, the playroom and the sunny southwest-facing conservatory, as well as a formal dining room.

The central kitchen and breakfast room extends to 24ft and features terracotta tiled flooring, modern Shaker-style units, a central island with a breakfast bar and an Aga, as well as ample space for a breakfast table. A utility room opening onto the rear courtyard offers further room for home storage and appliances, as does the cellar.

An impressive painted oak staircase, together with a secondary staircase, rises to the upper levels. Five well-presented double bedrooms are found on the first floor. The vast principal bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe and en suite bathroom, and each of the four additional first-floor bedrooms also have en suite bathrooms. A further staircase leads to the second floor, where there are two large double bedrooms, a family bathroom, loft storage rooms and a room that houses the mechanism for the clock.

At the entrance to the property, double electric gates open to the walled gardens, with the driveway leading to the front of the house, pond and dovecote, and providing plenty of parking space.

The front gardens are southwest facing, welcoming plenty of sunlight throughout the day. There are further gardens to the side, while at the rear there is a courtyard area and rolling lawns and meadows, with a wooded area. There are useful paddocks which the current vendors use to graze livestock, along with a kitchen garden with raised beds and fruit cages, allowing one to ‘live off the land’.

The gardens also feature an outdoor heated swimming pool with its own sun terrace and bar and kitchen.

Agent's Note: The exterior images are library photographs.

Known for its close-knit community and rural charm, Tunstall is a picturesque village with a collection of attractive period properties. The property is situated in the heart of the village conservation area close to the village hall and church. Tunstall CofE Primary School is Ofsted rated ‘Outstanding’.

Nearby Sittingbourne has shops and a station, from where trains on the High Speed link reach London St Pancras in just under an hour; the station also provides services to Victoria, Cannon Street and London Bridge. Ebbsfleet international, accessed via the M2, also offers High Speed services to London from about 19 minutes.

The M2 (Junction 5) is to the west, and the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone and Port of Dover can both be reached via the M2/M20, providing good access to Continental Europe. A wide range of schooling, in both the state and private sectors, is to be found in Sittingbourne, Faversham, Maidstone, Canterbury and Rochester, all of which also provide extensive shopping and recreational facilities.