The reborn Regency style
CHELTENHAM and the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty that surrounds it is one of the UK’S most glorious town and country property hotspots.the Regency spa town, still with much of its magnificent Georgian architecture in place, is one of those regional jewels that seems to offer everything.
Its golden Cotswold stone neoclassic gems, with fluted columns, Ionic porticos and balustrades, include the Grade I listed Pittville Pump Room as well as many handsome Georgian townhouses that add elegance to many of the residential areas close to the town centre.
Now CALA Homes is putting a modern spin on that Regency style, which dates back to George III’S visit to “take the waters” in 1788.
Its new residential development, 59 Lansdown, is in Dean Park and Hatherley Park conservation area and its 25 villas and 42 one and two-bedroom apartments have been designed to reflect the Cheltenham style.
Built from Ashlar Stone with natural slate roofing, the houses and apartments include four penthouses and are laid out in a crescent-like curve with ornate wrought iron detailing on their first-floor Juliet balconies.
Interiors have high ceilings, with large roof lights above the internal staircase to allow light to flood through to the ground floor.there are also large windows, deep skirting boards and elegant cornicing to complete the period detail, combined with the energy-efficient and low-maintenance benefits of a new-build home. Prices range from £259,950 to £995,000 (01242 650 589; cala.co.uk).
“Reinvented townhouses come with a host of benefits, from both a design and maintenance perspective,” says Sarah
Mckinnon, head of residential development sales for Saville Cheltenham, who specialises in advice and pricing for residential developers.
“New-build townhouses are often designed with traditional period-inspired exteriors, such as 59 Lansdown, which has been built to sit sympathetically in its surroundings in Cheltenham.
“Yet delve inside and you’ll often discover that the interior design in modern townhouses has a contemporary twist, with the spaces thoughtfully planned out for flexible living and urban family life.
“What’s more, these new properties come with the added benefit of improved efficiency compared to their old counterparts, including double-glazed windows, effective boilers and innovative water-saving systems, creating the ideal environment for low-maintenance living.” What these townhouses don’t have, compared with homes in the surrounding countryside, of course, is acres of space. But for those who want to create their own period property with a contemporary twist, Cotswold property specialist Butler Sherborn suggests a barn conversion.
It has a number of barns currently available, and at different stages of completion, including Tallet Cottage and Barn, at Aldsworth, just shy of 20 miles from Cheltenham.
There’s already planning and listed building consent to convert the Grade II listed 16th century barn into an architectdesigned three to four-bedroom home with a kitchen-breakfast room and sitting room with plenty of period features.
Similarly, there’s permission to remodel Cotswold stone-built Tallet Cottage into a spacious home with three en-suite bedrooms, a large kitchen-breakfast room and separate sitting room.
‘We plan for flexible living’