Crime & Safety
Old Oxfordshire school with seven bedrooms for sale at £1.9m
Dating back to the mid-17th century, Holcombe House in Deddington on the way to Banbury has served various roles within the community over the last century.
Originally a private residence, it became Holcombe House Prep School in 1920, which ran for 15 years until its closure in 1935.
In 1945, the building was bought by Charles and Gertrude West, who operated it as a guest house.
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After the war, it became a hotel and continued as such until its closure in 2011.
The current owners first came across Holcombe House – then known as the Holcombe Hotel – while renting in the village and walking their children to school.
When the hotel shut and planning permission was secured for its conversion into three dwellings, they recognised the potential for a family home.
They bought the property in 2012 and set about a comprehensive restoration project that would see it transformed.
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The renovation was completed over nine months and saw the house taken ‘back to its bones’, removing post-war additions, and reinstating original architecture.
Lifting tiles in the entrance hall revealed the original Hornton stone floor, while lost Georgian details were reintroduced following meticulous research by the owners.
Among the most dramatic transformations is the kitchen and dining space, which once comprised two industrial kitchens with a timber lean-to washing-up area.
The area has been opened up, French windows installed, and light brought in to create what is now the heart of the home.
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Holcombe House offers seven bedrooms across its first and second floors, including a principal suite with a roll-top bath, double sinks and a separate shower.
Rooms on the ground floor feature sash windows, open fireplaces, exposed timbers and high ceilings, while there is a utility room, larder, store and workshop.
The first floor accommodation consists of three of the seven bedrooms, including the principal bedroom with a bathroom.
There are two further double bedrooms and a family bathroom, along with a gym and home office.
On the second floor are four bedrooms, two of which are en suite, including an open-plan playroom area that could also be used as a study for older teenagers.
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Outside, the rear garden provides a peaceful space of mature planting, stone walls and a raised lawn, with pedestrian access to parking for up to six cars.
The property also includes a completely separate commercial unit with its own entrance, currently used as a hairdressing and beauty salon.
Sophie Gannon from estate agent Savills Banbury said: “Holcombe House is one of the most elegant and charming homes to come to market in Deddington for many years.
“The owners have not only revived its historic character but transformed it into a bright, warm and exceptionally versatile family home.
“Properties of this scale and provenance are extremely rare in the heart of the village, making its sale a truly special opportunity.”
Oxford Mail photographer Chris Love captured the vociferous group as they marched past Magdalen College on their way to Oxford Town Hall.
Oxford city councillors were holding their monthly meeting in the council chamber and the protesters were determined to make their feelings known.
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The 30 mothers, some with pushchairs, handed in a petition with 1,000 signatures demanding nurseries for under-fives at Blackbird Leys.
Mother-of-four Joyce Pritchard, of Balfour Road, told the council that families on the estate were asking for nurseries to be open all day, with places for all children under five “regardless of circumstances”. They should also be free.
She said Blackbird Leys had 900 children under five and had only one nursery with just 30 places. It took most children for just half a day in the term before they started school.
She told councillors: “We feel that free day-long nurseries are a basic right for mothers so they can have time of their own.”
The mothers’ campaign was supported by the Oxford Women’s Action Group and women students at Oxford University.
The group were escorted by two women police officers on their march along High Street in 1970.
This wasn’t the only time that families in Oxford launched a protest about nurseries.
As we have recalled, mothers and their children staged a 24-hour sit-in and sleep-in at Grandpont nursery in South Oxford in 1978 when councillors decided it should close.
The protest was organised by the Oxford City Nursery Campaign, whose members arranged public meetings, demonstrations, petition signings and a carnival to publicise their protest. It received widespread coverage in the media.
The occupation lasted for more than two weeks, parents and children taking turns to sleep there and guard doorways against unwelcome intruders.
Wallingford Town Council installed them on the advice of Historic England to protect the historic site by preventing bicycles from being ridden down the Castle Bank slope, which could damage the historic earthworks.
A spokesman for the council said: “The original suggestion was to install logs, but we felt there was a better way to achieve this.
“The planters are designed to meet that requirement, while also being a more attractive addition to the space.
“They’re not there to stop people enjoying the gardens.”
The council said the gardens form part of a scheduled monument, and it has a duty to help preserve them.
Later this year, the planters will be filled with planting to bring colour to the area and support pollinators such as bees and butterflies.
The council thanked residents for their feedback and said it hoped the explanation provided greater clarity.
Nursing assistant Eileen Naughton is set to run the marathon to raise awareness and funds for the charity Children With Cancer UK.
Mrs Naughton works on the Major Trauma Ward at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford and part time at Chilton Garden Centre.
Passionate about supporting children diagnosed with cancer, Ms Naughton’s efforts will contribute to the charity’s mission of funding life-saving research.
She began her charitable running journey in 2008 and has since competed in various marathons, raising more than £38,000 for several charities.
These include Children With Cancer, the Oxfordshire Oesophageal and Stomach Organisation, and the Meningitis Trust.
Her motivation to run also stems from personal loss.
She became familiar with the distressing reality of a cancer diagnosis after her mother died from oesophageal cancer in June 2018.
Mrs Naughton has said she has been training since December and has clocked up more than 100 runs totalling more than 588 miles.
Anyone wishing to support Ms Naughton can make a donation via the Enthuse fundraising website.
Ms Naughton’s unwavering commitment to charity work serves as an example to others.
From moving heavy plant trolleys at the garden centre and netting Christmas trees in December to running half-marathons in Reading and Wokingham in preparation, she is dedicated to making a difference.
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