The Herald - The Herald Magazine
BY GEORGIAN BASK IN ALL THE SPLENDOURS OF THE KINGDOM
DISCOVERING Westfield House, a beautiful Georgian property in scenic Fife, was a source of great joy for Fiona and Mike Clark. “As soon as we saw it, we thought – this could be the perfect family home,” explains Fiona.
“We had three young children, we wanted to move back to Scotland from London, and we were looking for somewhere with space for us all.
“I’m originally from Fife and as our children were approaching school age, it was where we wanted to be. So we bought it.”
She adds, smiling: “And then, almost immediately, Mike was told he was being posted to the Middle East with his work.
So, off we went … and for the next seven years, we only lived at Westfield during the holidays.”
Nevertheless, the couple and their children – Ben, Alex and Anna, now 18, 16 and 15 respectively – have many happy memories of summers spent at Westfield, playing and relaxing within its pretty walls and throughout its stunning gardens.
Fiona adds: “Five years ago, we came back fully and it has been a very happy family home ever since.”
Westfield House dates back to Georgian times and may or may not have connections to writer Henrietta Keddie, who wrote under the pseudonym Sarah Tytler.
“We’re not sure, but we believe the house was part of an estate belonging to her family and she and her sisters ran a school here,” says Fiona.
“It’s plausible that this could be the school, with the drawing room where they held the dances, and the annexe as the classroom – it’s a lovely idea but it may not be correct.”
Whether the story is true or not, Westfield House, with its encaustic-tiled dining room floor (likely to have been the original, grand entranceway), its period fireplaces and wooden shutters and pretty courtyard does serve as a gentle reminder of days gone by.
The Clarks have sympathetically transformed the house, adding Fired Earth bathrooms and a DeVOL kitchen, ripping up old tartan carpets from the building’s previous incarnation as a B&B and redecorating in classic and stylish tones.
“We needed to change the layout – it was ideal for a bed and breakfast but not great for a family home,” smiles Fiona. “All the shutters had been glued down, so we restored them and just tried to open it up and update it.
“The annexe was a great asset – we let it out, which was useful, and it could also work as a granny flat.”
The rooms are laid out over three levels and include a self-contained two-bedroom annexe which has its own entrance from the rear courtyard. The south facing rooms look out over the grounds which sit behind impressive gates off Westfield Road, one of the most sought after residential areas of Cupar and just a short walk from the centre of this thriving county market town.
“The location is fantastic – it’s easy to get to Edinburgh by train, there are great schools within easy reach and the beaches of Fife are half an hour away,” adds Fiona.
Westfield House is also well placed for speedy access to St Andrews (which lies around nine miles away), Dundee and Perth.
Fiona has many favourite rooms in the house such as the the spacious kitchen, and the equally well thought-out utility room – “we deliberately made it as nice as the kitchen, with access outside, and with three kids and a dog, we do spend a lot of time in
there,” laughs Fiona. She also loves the cosy study where she often works from home; and the beautiful, peaceful living room, tastefully decorated in white and teal.
As well as the drawing room, study, a further living room and the beautiful dining room, the ground floor includes the kitchen, complete with handmade cabinets and a classic Aga, and a utility room, family bathroom and comfortable family room.
Upstairs, there are two bedrooms a second bathroom, and the master bedroom has an en-suite shower. There are two further bedrooms on the second floor.
The annexe includes two bedrooms, a dining kitchen, snug and shower room.
“The house is incredibly bright, and I worry we won’t get something like that again,” admits Fiona. “I think we will struggle to find a home as beautiful as this.
“It’s a house that needs to be filled with a growing family. It has been a much-loved home for us and now that our children have grown, we are moving on.”
She adds, with a laugh: “But if I could shrink it by 50% and take it with me? Well, then I would never sell it.”