Historic golf club and hotel dating 1763 up for £8m sale

Donnington Grove Hotel and Country Club, in the village of Donnington north of Newbury, is being sold after being operated by the current owners since 2005.

The estate, which spans about 283 acres, includes a recently refurbished restaurant and bar, multiple meeting and event spaces, and an acclaimed 18-hole championship golf course.

The hotel and golf course are set within private grounds overlooking the River Lambourn, and the 18th-century Grade II-listed manor house is arranged across three floors.

The hotel has 40 en-suite bedrooms, including rooms within the main house and a selection of outbuildings.

The estate was previously up for sale in 2022 for offers in excess of £10 million but did not sell.

The current owners, who have run the hotel since 2005, said: “After a long period of ownership, and in light of the passing of two of the original company directors, we have decided the time is right to hand Donnington Grove to new owners.

“This marks an important transition, allowing the estate to enter its next chapter and realise its full potential.

“Most importantly, we would like to thank the staff, with whom we have shared this memorable journey, for their hard work and dedication over the years.”

The sale is being managed by Ed Bellfield, regional director of hotels at Christie & Co.

He said: “Donnington Grove is an exceptional property offering scale, heritage and operational depth rarely found in the market.

“The asset is expected to attract strong interest from a broad range of buyers seeking high quality hotel and golf related leisure opportunities in a highly accessible location close to the M4 corridor and within 90 minutes of London’s West End.”

The hotel, dating back to 1763, has links to historical figures like Winston Churchill.

The mansion, built in the ‘Strawberry Hill Gothic’ style by amateur architect John Chute for wealthy historian James Pettit Andrews, has a rich history.

The next owner in 1783 was William Brummell, former private secretary to Prime Minister Lord North, who expanded and landscaped the estate.

However, it was his son, George, known as ‘Beau’ Brummell, who became a Regency-style icon, having a revolutionary impact on men’s fashion—even introducing the suit and necktie to menswear.

In 1795, Donnington Grove was transferred to John Bebb, an East India Company official.

After the death of his widow in 1850, the estate changed hands to Head Pottinger Best.

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The house remained in the family until 1936 when it was sold to Mrs Amy Swithinbank.

Like many other country estates, the house was requisitioned in 1940 for Allied Supplies Ltd.

After the war, the estate was sold to the Hon Reginald Fellows and remained in the family until its purchase by Shi-tennoji International in December 1991.

Dave Thomas, one of Britain’s foremost golf architects, was tasked with creating a golf course that was in keeping with the listed landscape gardens and lake to the south of the house.

The construction of the course started in November 1991, and on June 12, 1993, the Donnington Grove Country Club opened.

In April 2000, Donnington Grove changed names to Parasampia Golf & Country Club, a name already used by the company in Japan, but it has since reverted to the Donnington Grove name.