A PRIVATE Somerset estate offering extraordinary views of the countryside and with links to King George III has been brought to the market by Savills.
The sale of The Aviaries, which extends to approximately 355 acres, also includes full planning permission for an exceptional contemporary house, pavilion and swimming pool, designed by award-winning architect Mary Duggan, and a remodelling of the entire site design by renowned landscape architect Tom Stuart-Smith.
Set in a quiet and rural location outside Shepton Montague, in South Somerset, The Aviaries forms part of a former Georgian estate known as Redlynch Park, which included a remarkable landscape garden developed in the eighteenth century by the First Earl of Ilchester, who was the Chancellor of the Exchequer to George III.
It is believed that Lord Ilchester built The Towers at the entrance of The Aviaries to impress the King, who was a regular visitor to Redlynch – which is one of around 1,600 sites in England listed in Historic England’s Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.
Available as a whole with a quoted guide price of offers in excess of £8million, the sale also includes an attractive four bedroom, Grade II listed Georgian lodge that was fully renovated in 2009 and an extensive range of modern farm buildings, including silage clamps and secure storage.
The land, which is predominantly arable land interspersed with permanent pasture and some woodland, is certified organic and has been in an organic system since 1989. It is currently farmed by local cheese producer Godminster Farms.
Fred Cook, in Savills farm agency team, said: “First and foremost, The Aviaries is situated in the most wonderful of rural positions and is close to the ever popular town of Bruton.
"Its position provides extraordinary views of the rolling countryside and, without a single public right of way on the estate, it ensures that both the existing lodge and the proposed new dwelling have the benefit of absolute privacy.
“The planning permission for an imaginative and innovative modern house, coupled with the architectural and landscape designs, offer the purchaser a unique opportunity to combine ‘new’ with ‘old’ within the context of an historic park, and with the benefit of a mature rural setting. Not only does the farm present a variety of opportunities but, importantly, there are also very few good commercial farms of this size that have come to the market over the last 24 months and there is real, pent-up demand for farmland of this specification.”
Recent analysis by Savills rural research shows that there are early signs that the theme of low supply, which has dominated the farmland market in the last couple of years, is beginning to ease. 58 per cent more farmland was publicly marketed in the first half of 2021 than in H1 2020, although for obvious reasons, that was an exceptional year.
Across the UK, supply to 30 June 2021 is only 8 per cent below the five-year average, which marks a significant swing in comparison to activity last year.
Viewings for The Aviaries are strictly by appointment through Savills.
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