A Grade II* listed medieval hall house, offering extensive living accommodation and gardens approaching one and a half acres, beside the church and river in sought-after Clifford Chambers, a peaceful Warwickshire village.

• Dating to 1434 and regarded as one of Warwickshire’s oldest privately owned homes, this Grade II* listed former rectory is a rare surviving timber-framed hall house.

• Character kitchen and dining room with painted brickwork, oak beams and leaded windows, plus pantry and boot room.

• Generous reception rooms include a sitting room and family room displaying original beams and diamond-pane windows.

• A vaulted bathroom houses a central tiled bath and a separate shower beneath heavy trusses.

• Set in approximately 1.4 acres of mature grounds with lawns, orchards and woodland.

• A gravelled driveway and turning circle lead to an attached garage, offering ample parking.

• Next to the village church in Clifford Chambers, this home is approaching its 600th anniversary and offers the rare chance to become custodian of a living piece of history.

The history of The Old Rectory
The Old Rectory is an exceptional timber-framed medieval house incorporating a former open hall dated by dendrochronology to 1433–34. Standing on land once part of Clifford Manor, granted to the monks of Worcester in Saxon times, it is thought to have been built for Rector John Bokeland around 1434 as a high-status hall house with cross wings, jettied elevations and close-studded timbers on stone foundations. Its original layout comprised a lofty open hall flanked by service and parlour wings, with full-height windows, four-centred doorways and a detached kitchen.

The house evolved over the centuries: the hall was floored over in the early seventeenth century, a staircase added, and elegant wooden panelling was introduced to a reception room. All of the rectors continued to live at The Old Rectory until the Reverend Pippet relinquished the benefice, after which the house was subdivided into cottages in the nineteenth century. It was reunited in 1927 by Canon Brookes, much loved, and later served as the social centre of village life until its sale into private ownership in 1982.

Now Grade II* listed for its exceptional architectural and historic importance, The Old Rectory, which includes a matching pair of original stone fireplaces with heraldic shield decoration, is among the most significant houses in Warwickshire. Predating William Shakespeare by more than a century, it stands between the village church and former manor on about 1.4 acres bounded by the River Stour and will mark its 600th anniversary in 2034, offering the next custodian a rare opportunity to continue its long and distinguished story.

The ground floor accommodation
On the ground floor, the layout centres on a kitchen and dining room with painted brickwork and exposed beams. A generous sitting room spans the front, alongside a family room, snug and study. Original timbers, diamond-paned and sash windows, low ceilings and decorative cornicing reflect the home’s architectural evolution, with the family room retaining the first of a pair of original stone fireplaces, featuring a heraldic shield, while the snug preserves some of the earliest known Georgian panelling, marking the shift in taste that introduced sash windows. A pantry, boot room and direct garden access support everyday living.

The first floor accommodation
The first floor offers five uniquely styled bedrooms and a family bathroom. The principal bedroom is set within a jettied gable, where substantial exposed timbers frame the space alongside the second of a pair of original medieval stone fireplaces, also featuring a heraldic shield above. Other bedrooms display close-studded timbers, sloping ceilings and original beams, with views across the grounds and surrounding countryside. The spacious bathroom combines oak trusses with a centrally positioned tiled bath and separate shower.

The garden
Extending to around 1.4 acres, the grounds include front lawns and a gravel driveway sweeping past the timber-framed façade to the attached garage and outbuildings. Beyond lie orchards, level lawns and mature woodland. The River Stour forms one boundary and attracts kingfishers and herons. The driveway winds past the churchyard through hedging, providing turning space and additional hardstanding, while the square plot offers privacy and potential for landscaping.

The Old Rectory sits next to the village church at the heart of Clifford Chambers, just south of Stratford-upon-Avon and surrounded by rolling Warwickshire countryside. Its roughly square 1.4-acre grounds are bounded in part by the River Stour, providing riverside walks and abundant wildlife. The village has a friendly community with a pub and village hall, while Stratford-upon-Avon offers a wide range of shops, restaurants, cultural attractions and professional services.

Transport links are strong, with the A46 and A429 connecting to the Midlands motorway network and rail services from Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick Parkway providing access to Birmingham and beyond. There is a good selection of state and independent schools in the area, and cultural highlights such as the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Warwick Castle and the Cotswolds are all within easy reach.

The property benefits from mains gas, electricity, water and drainage.

EPC commissioned but cannot be produced due to safety concerns at the property.

Broadband Speed: Ultrafast broadband available. Download speeds up to 1800 Mbps and upload speeds up to 220 Mbps (source: Ofcom checker).

Mobile Coverage: Likely available from EE, Three, O2 and Vodafone (source: Ofcom checker).

Flood Risk (Long-term forecast): According to the Environment Agency’s long-term flood risk data, the property is currently at very low for river and surface water flooding.

Council tax band H