ASHENDENE ROAD

SITUATION
Bayford House is situated on the edge of the rural village of Bayford, surrounded by well-maintained countryside and woodland. The village includes a pub, a church and primary school. A comprehensive range of shopping and leisure facilities are available nearby in Hertford, about 3.1 miles distant. Further amenities can be found in Welwyn Garden City 7.8 miles away and the city of St. Albans about 12 miles away.

The area provides numerous opportunities with access to footpaths, bike trails and bridle paths. Sporting facilities in the locality are plentiful with golf available at Brickendon (1 mile), Essendon (3 miles) Hanbury Manor (8 miles) and The Melbourne Club at Brocket Hall (9 miles). Bayford has an active village life including a cricket club and village hall social events. Hertford runs numerous football, hockey, netball, cricket and rugby teams for all ages.

There is an excellent selection of schools available nearby. Within the State sector, East Herts is a blue-ribbon education provider. Within the Private system, nearby preparatory schools include St Hugh’s, Heath Mount, St. Joseph’s in the Park and Duncombe. There are also a number of highly regarded secondary schools including Haileybury College, Queenswood School for girls, St Edmunds College and St Albans High School.

The property is well placed in a rural, yet accessible location with good transport links to the M25 accessed at Junction 24. The A1M and A10 are all approximately eight miles distant. There is a twice hourly train service from Bayford village station reaching Moorgate with a travel time of about 47 minutes. Potters Bar station provides a fast train to Kings Cross (approximately 15 mins) and Moorgate (approximately 30 mins), with St Albans running direct to London Gatwick in just over 1 hour. Hertford East offers a service direct into London Liverpool Street with alternative trains available nearby at Hertford North, Cuffley, Brookmans Park and Hatfield stations.

International airports include Luton (approximately 19 miles) Stanstead (approximately 25 miles) and Heathrow (approximately 36 miles).

HISTORY
Bayford House is Grade II* listed and of historical and architectural importance dating to 1729. Once part of the Bayford Estate owned by Admiral Clinton Baker, the house is believed to have formally been a preparatory school. The original school bell situated above the boot room entrance has been restored.

Originally a medieval hall house with rafters dated from the 13th and 14th centuries, the house has significant alterations including an additional storey with forward extension dated to the early 18th Century, completing the very handsome symmetrical front elevation.

ACCOMMODATION
Bayford House is an immaculately presented, Georgian country house situated in beautiful gardens and grounds. The structure is a brick façade around a timber frame under a slate roof. The house has been sympathetically and extensive restored from 2015 – 2018 including full re-plumbing, re-wiring and pointing of the external walls.

Accommodation flows effortlessly across three floors, combining plenty of natural light with well-proportioned reception rooms boasting period features including original decorative cornicing, sash windows with shutters and exposed timbers. There is a self-contained two bedroom annexe which links through to the principal house and could be re-incorporated into the house if required.

Of particular note is the drawing room, centred on an ornate Art Nouveau fireplace with double doors opening into the study, affording excellent views over the gardens. The bespoke deVOL kitchen is well equipped with a range of fitted cupboards and units with beautiful stonework surfaces and Gaggenau appliances.

From the entrance hall, the elegant principal staircase rises to the first floor with original early 18th century balustrade. The principal bedroom suite enjoys views to the front of the property with steps leading to the en suite, with marble floor and wall tiles, a freestanding Lefroy Brooks bath and a separate rainfall shower. There are three further bedrooms, a Samuel Heath family bathroom and a separate WC located privately of the main landing.

The second floor boasts four double bedrooms, one of which has its own private hand-made dressing room and library area. The floor contains one en suite family bathroom, a shower room, and a further freestanding bathroom with amazing views across the garden and surrounding paddocks. From this floor, easy access can be gained to a full length loft which is lined and served with power making it ideal for internal storage.

OUTBUILDINGS
There is an excellent range of outbuildings which includes a traditional stable block currently being used as workshop, with separate wood store. The old coach house provides a double garage as well as an ante-store room and extended side garage space ideal for tools, machinery, garden furniture and other items to be stored. This area also provides an electric car charging point. An undercover parking area, currently being used as an outside gym, leads into the traditional walled kitchen garden and orchard. It is flanked by the oil storage room and games room which has its own private south facing courtyard. Adjacent to the games room can be found the swimming pool changing area comprising of four private changing rooms, a shower area, Sauna and WC.
The indoor swimming pool has been constructed in the style of an 18th century orangery and overlooks the walled kitchen garden and private courtyard.

Nearby is a well maintained, all weather tennis court which is surrounded by a mature beech hedge.

GARDENS AND GROUNDS
The beautiful gardens are a principal feature of Bayford House. Laid mainly to lawn and studded with a selection of specimen trees including oaks, cedar, mulberry and a magnificent tulip tree, the formal gardens are divided and sheltered by mature beech and yew hedges in part flanked by well stocked borders and shrubberies.

To the north-west these lawns give way to an orchard and wild flower meadow whilst to the north east is an old dew pond which forms an attractive ornamental feature and leads into the private forest area.

The walled kitchen garden has been carefully tended and provides a variety of vegetables and soft fruits together with fresh flowers for the house. There is also a mature orchard. Wrapping around the house are the paddocks providing level grazing suitable for livestock with separate road access and water connected. The paddocks are surrounded by mature woodland.