For Sale with residential and commercial use three large substantial country houses with views south over parkland and lake to Dartmoor on secluded 150 acre garden and forest estate, all of which is accessible via three miles of foot/cycle path to remote Dury Water Valley, leading inside the deer fence around the boundary to four large wildlife ponds and the beautiful broad leaf forest with every furry and feathered creature of the British Isles, a wonderful safe place for children at the end of a 1500 yard private road. Located in South West England, the Braddon Estate is 12 miles Launceston, 7 miles Holsworthy, 42 miles Exeter, 50 miles Plymouth and l0 miles from the west Devon coast. The Ashwater Primary School is 2 miles. Holsworthy Community College school bus collects from end of Braddon Lane. Both are good schools.

I am now in process of evolving a new future for Braddon as an eco-hamlet of residential houses which in due course will be largely self sufficient in energy. The local planning authority, Torridge District Council has approved live/work use for three of the largest Braddon houses: BULLOCKS' HOUSE which has an undeveloped covered commercial area attached to the north side of the residential area. This area could be developed into a studio, a workshop, or a residential flat for letting. LAKE HOUSE and LINHAYE, each divided into two three bedroom self contained flats Ground and First Floor. The Ground Floors are designated for commercial use. For example, this means that the owner could live in the first floor flat and let the ground floor flat for holiday or residential use, providing an immediate source of income, or the ground floor could be used as office space , a studio, workshop or any commercial use which did not disturb the neighbours.

The properties are offered freehold tenure with Covenants giving the resident owners rights to amenity use of the Braddon Estate with the obligation to pay an estate maintenance charge calculated annually at cost, rights and obligation to receive metered heat, and water from the private supplies and/or the mains.

Heat comes from the central woodchip boiler via a district heating system and is charged for via heat meters in each house. The long term cost of wood energy differs fundamentally from the cost of oil heat (the only alternative in this rural location) in that it is made up of the cost of the local machinery necessary to process local timber (sustainably sourced from thinnings or coppice from the Braddon Forest), plus the cost of local labour: whereas oil of course is priced in the volatile world market. Water comes from water sources on the estate and is very tasty; however, mains water supply is connected to supplement during occasional dry spells, and is charged at the going South West Water rates via meters. Electricity is metered in each house and charged near to cost. There is an electricity contract with CLA Utility Brokers. Each house has a telephone line with Broadband connection paid for directly by residents.

On the Braddon Estate there are four more houses and a caravan site, let to residential tenants and, Braddon Farmhouse, a Class III listed building, where I live. All Braddon residents have private amenity access to the land; there are no public rights of way. Forestry Commission land in conifer woodland lies on the North and East Braddon boundary; a dairy farm to the West and South. The FC allows public access for amenity use on foot, cycle or horseback, but not motor vehicles. The excellent coarse fishing in the Braddon lake is reserved to a local fishing syndicate which residents may join at a small charge per year. The grass field immediately in front of and to the south of the houses is designated Forestry Open Space. It can never be built on. To do so would require a Planning Authority change of use, to which Braddon residents could object. Residential Freeholders pay an estate maintenance charge, which would be calculated by the management company annually on actual cost, divided proportionately between residents therefore paying one/tenth of the annual cost. The maintenance charge will cover all the communally used areas of the estate including the car parks, access road, footpaths, and communal garden areas. If residents wanted to keep a horse, provision could be made for stabling in the North Ride area, and grazing in one of the forestry open spaces, provided the horse would stay behind an electric fence. Chickens have been successfully kept in the forest areas and arrangements could be made for allotments. A reasonable number of dogs and cats may be kept, but outside the private gardens dogs must be on leads, which is to protect our wildlife from undue disturbance. Dogs of course must not disturb the neighbours

The remainder of the Braddon freehold of 150 acres including the forest and the woodchip energy system, will be vested in the management company Braddon Estate Ltd. whose Company Articles include the obligation to supply and administer services to the resident freeholders.

Braddon was a piece of derelict land when the owner came here in 1960. It is the work of our lifetimes, myself and my late wife Anne, which I want to continue into the future in its present form as an integrated country estate, which will benefit the residents, the locality, our country, and the planet itself. I believe mat climate change is already upon us in the form of a rise in the world prices of commodities and oil. Soon to come also are serious social problems from rising sea levels and coastal flooding, especially in London, which will displace people from the houses, who will need to be resettled on higher ground especially in the West country. Braddon is on the 500 foot contour.