Carters Farm, a listed farmhouse at Norley Wood in the New Forest, front elevation

Listed Building / Period Home

Carters Farmhouse

Norley Wood, New Forest

The Brief

Carters Farmhouse is a beautiful listed farmhouse at Norley Wood, within the New Forest, with far-reaching views across the fields to the Isle of Wight. We were instructed by an estate management company to refurbish the house, which had not been touched or changed tenants for over 80 years. We also reinstated the driveway to improve access to the property.

The house was in considerable disrepair. On the front elevation we replaced the sash windows like-for-like with new hardwood sash windows, repointed the whole front in white lime mortar, and rebuilt parts of the front elevation walls. A significant amount of structural work was carried out to the roof to stop any further subsidence.

Original floors and finishes were kept in keeping with the building. The property was decorated throughout, and where original features had been removed or were missing we replaced them with appropriate pieces to suit the stone period of the building. The floors were refinished throughout, as the client wanted to keep a period look and not cover the original features, and hessian sisal matting was laid in the bedrooms and upstairs hallways.

The insulation was upgraded as much as possible throughout, using materials that allow the building to breathe correctly given its age and ventilation requirements. The fireplaces and hearths were completely rebuilt, having been stripped out in the past for a 1960s faux chimney.

A new heating system was installed with an external oil boiler and a new oil storage tank, as the property is too far from any mains services. The pressurised cylinder was located in the roof space above the boot room and shower room so as not to take up any useful ground floor space. New foul drainage was installed, including a downstairs shower room and boot room. The heritage flagstone floor here was protected by lining it and bedding the shower tray above, so it can be removed by a future custodian if required.

We hope we have done the property justice, to be loved and lived in for the next 80 years.