Church Farm Lodge, Hemley, Suffolk

Designed by the architect son of modernist titan Ern Goldfinger, this sublime rural home intermeshes inspired mid-century details with its hearty historic bones. Converted from a series of agricultural buildings, Church Farm Lodge also benefits from a spacious two-bedroom annexe, the East Wing, which was built in 2002 and has recently been refurbished. Unfolding laterally across over 3,500 sq ft, the house is chock-full of bespoke joinery and maintains a close connection to its surrounding mature gardens through scores of tall glazing. It sits in leafy Hemley and has views across the surrounding Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at the River Deben, a brilliantly bucolic location that belies its proximity to Ipswich, where train services run to London in around an hour.

Environmental Performance

Church Farm Lodge has undergone a series of interventions to improve its environmental performance. These include underfloor heating throughout, an air-source heat pump, solar panels and photovoltaics on the south-facing roof.

The Tour 

The site, in its entirety, consists of two separate dwellings: Church Farm Lodge and the East Wing. Set to an L-Shape plan, the two single storey houses are autonomous yet interlocking, providing versatility of layout and flexible modes of modern living.

Approached by a quiet country road encompassed by field after field, the home has a private and secluded feel. A low profile – archetypal of mid-century domestic architecture – is defined by a material palette that evokes the building’s early agricultural history. A pitched roof crowns the building, foretelling the generous proportions and exposed timber trusses inside.

A private gated driveway gives way to several entrance points. An elegant portico paves up to the primary entrance to Church Farm Lodge, with a run of windows on one side overlooking mature perennial plantings and space for a bench on the other; a pause-worthy space in its own regard with well-positioned water features. Inside, a spacious entrance hallway has WC access and plenty of room for shoes and coats.

At the heart of Church Farm Lodge is the open-plan living room and kitchen, a geometrically informed space which distills much of Goldfinger’s architectural ethos. Ceramic tiles run underfoot in the kitchen and sunshine-yellow high-level cabinetry complements the warm wood that lines the pitched ceiling. Oak is used to form wide countertops that wrap around to become a half-height shelf with sight-lines into the living space.

The living/dining area adjacent to the kitchen is characterised by lines of bespoke shelving, including a run beneath a huge picture window that faces the atrium pond, ensuring constant visual communication between inside and out. A wood-burning stove warms the entire space in the cooler months.

A double en suite bedroom lies to the left of the kitchen, with full-height in-built storage and sliding timber-framed glass doors circling back to the courtyard.

A series of interlinking rooms flow with ease across the westerly wing of the house. White walls and exposed wood are the prevailing finish, amplifying a beautifully bright, airy atmosphere, while ensuring a versatility of use as bedrooms, living rooms, or workspaces. Strategically placed ribbons of glazing and expansive picture window bring an excellent quality of light throughout, and glazed doors pivot directly to the garden. Deep built-in wardrobes provide plentiful storage to the bedrooms which are, in turn, served by two bathrooms in this part of the house.

Exposed timber beams cross hatch the voluminous mono pitched ceilings of the current workshop: a large room which would comfortably convert to a bedroom or living space. At the far westerly point on plan, an impressive double height living space unfolds, with doors opening from here directly to the terrace and gardens.

The East Wing, a separate, adjoining dwelling which has previously rented, provides additional living space and two quiet sleeping areas, accessed via an independent entrance set beneath a large, covered terrace. A leafy courtyard garden leads into the conservatory, which in turn, connects to a modern kitchen and into the open plan living and dining areas. Engineered timber runs underfoot, continuing through to the two double bedrooms, each with an excellent provision of storage and a bathroom, complete with a bathtub.

Outside Space 

Surrounded by gardens of around a third of an acre, the house maintains infallible connections with the outdoors. The grounds have been spectacularly tended to over many years and erupt with colour and visual interest year-round. Several terraces and courtyards abut the house, providing spaces to relax and gather during the warmer months. Stately trees pepper the plot, and a series of lily pad-covered ponds attract a host of wildlife.

A large garden store adds to the ample storage provision.

The Area

The village of Hemley is clustered around a bend in the River Deben and sits between the larger parishes of Waldringfield and Newbourne in a gloriously peaceful part of east Suffolk. The location offers immediate access to various footpaths and cycle tracks through the surrounding open countryside. The local area, renowned for sailing, has some of the most established racing opportunities in the country.

Neighbouring Waldringfield, perched on the River Deben’s banks, is well-known for its sailing club; reachable from the house in around ten minutes by car. Also, in Waldringfield, The Maybush Inn affords wonderful waterfront views, and a seafood-inspired menu to match.

Newbourne, to the West, is home to Newbourne Springs, a charming nature reserve. The Fox Inn has been voted Suffolk’s pub of the year in the past, with a hearty menu and a great garden. The fabulous Virginia Nurseries is a family-run local veg grower supplying many markets, delis and shops with incredible seasonal produce.

The larger town of Woodbridge is a five-mile drive inland. Described as the ‘gem in Suffolk’s crown’, Woodbridge combines culture and scope for all outdoor activities in this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. There is also a very good independent bookshop at Woodbridge Books and The Riverside cinema, as well as a more comprehensive range of shops and restaurants. The Unruly Pig crops up again and again in gastro awards and is well worth a visit.

Snape Maltings nearby is an internationally regarded cultural centre; a mix of converted malthouses and granaries dating from the mid-19th century, several exhibitions occur here throughout the year. It also hosts the Aldeburgh Festival, a 24-day event celebrating music & the arts, opera, comedy and film.

There are several excellent state and private schools in the area. Wortham CofE Primary School, Elveden CofE Primary School, Hartismere Secondary School, Abbeygate Sixth Form College and Culford School are all well-rated by Ofsted.

Mainline rail services run to London Liverpool Street from Ipswich in about 70 minutes, with a branch line connecting services from Woodbridge.

Council Tax Band: D