Bransbury, Barton Stacey, Winchester, Hampshire

A magnificent Grade II Listed former mill house with beautiful gardens and grounds, a separate four-bedroom cottage and one and a quarter miles of fishing on the picturesque River Dever.

The main house features a wealth of splendid character details including exposed timber beams and grand fireplaces, while outside there are peaceful grounds with beautifully presented gardens and tranquil riverside meadows and woodland.

Bransbury Mill dates from the early 17th century and offers over 3,500 sq ft of excellent living space arranged over two floors. It has been in the ownership of the same family for many decades. The main focal point of the home is the stunning 34ft first-floor drawing room with its vaulted ceiling, exposed eaves, imposing brick-built fireplace and galleried study area above. The ground floor provides further living and entertaining space, including the sitting room with its panelled walls, bay window and fireplace, the formal dining room and a private study. The ground floor also has a well equipped kitchen/breakfast room with an Aga and sufficient fitted cupboards providing ample storage space for most appliances. The adjoining boot room and utility offer further space for home storage and appliances.

There is one generous double bedroom on the ground floor, with timber beams overhead and an en suite bathroom. The first floor provides a further four bedrooms, all of which are well-presented double rooms, one with an en suite shower room. Additionally, the first floor features a family bathroom.

Stable Cottage
The accommodation consists of a comfortable sitting room, a fully fitted kitchen with a dining area and upstairs, four bedrooms, a bathroom and a shower room. The cottage is currently occupied by the riverkeeper and his wife. The highly experienced and much respected riverkeeper has been employed by the vendors for over thirty years and they sincerely hope that any purchaser of Bransbury Mill will seriously consider continuing to employ him.

Outside
The property occupies an enchanting riverside setting and benefits from fishing rights along a mile and a quarter stretch of river. The land is a prime piece of chalk stream habitat that has been sympathetically managed for over four decades with a view to maximising the biodiversity of the property and consequently a plethora of native fauna and flora is found in the river, watermeadows and woodland. The garden of the main house is delightfully peaceful, with its rolling lawns, well-stocked border beds, pond and patio areas all creating a relaxing environment beside the river. Parking is available on the courtyard across the lane, where there is also access to the cottage and the outbuilding, which houses a machine store and an estate office. The cottage building incorporates a garage and a workshop space.

Fishing
Bransbury Mill has one and a quarter miles of prime chalk stream fly fishing on the River Dever, one of the main tributaries of the world famous River Test. The beat enjoys a substantial stock of wild brown trout, and no stocking has taken place in recent years. Grayling fishing can be enjoyed after the trout season ends. The beat enjoys heavy hatches of fly life throughout the season, starting with hawthorn in the spring, with prolific hatches of Mayfly during May and June, and good hatches of olives and sedges throughout the summer and autumn. The beat can be fished from both banks and fishers can enjoy the use of a comfortable lunch hut and a rain shelter if required. Approximately 300 fish caught are recorded in the estate fishing book each season. The adjoining meadows have been sympathetically managed to maximise biodiversity and are a riot of colour from spring through to autumn with native wildflowers.

There is a small pond with four hides for flighting wild duck, predominantly mallard but with a significant number of gadwall and teal when cold weather sets in. Over forty different species of trees provide some spectacular autumn colour in both the woodland and the meadows which also plays host to a rich variety of wildlife.

The property is set in the small hamlet of Bransbury, five miles from Andover and twelve miles north of Winchester. There are several everyday amenities in the village of Barton Stacey, including a local store, a parish church and a village pub. Barton Stacey also has a primary school, as does neighbouring Longparish. The popular and renowned Test Valley town of Stockbridge provides an array of good shopping, recreational facilities and amenities including a doctors surgery, dentist, a hotel and many good pubs and restaurants. Additionally, Winchester is easily accessible, with its shopping, leisure and cultural opportunities.

There is an excellent choice of schools in the area, these include prep schools at Farleigh,Twyford, Pilgrims and Cheam and secondary schools including Winchester College, St Swithuns and Peter Symonds Sixth Form College.

Communications links are plentiful with the A303 one mile away linking to the M3 and the national motorway network. Fast and frequent trains run from both Micheldever and Andover into London Waterloo. Southampton airport provides links to Europe and beyond.