Highfield, as its name suggests, sits on an elevated site overlooking Dunsany Lowfield deer park, among rolling Co Meath countryside. The setting is bucolic and tranquil, with the sleepy village of Dunsany is close by.
Highfield has an extensive 336sq m (3,616sq ft) of space, encompassing five bedrooms, five bathrooms and ample reception space and ancillary accommodation. It would suit a busy family with equestrian interests, or who love to entertain. It is being brought to market by Savills, seeking €1.225m.
The house, built in the 1960s and subsequently remodelled twice in the 1990s and 2001 by RIAC architect Robin Mandel, is accessed via a sweeping driveway that opens on to a gravelled forecourt. The entrance hallway is to the back of the house and has a guest WC on the left and a pretty study on the right, where custom-built shelving wraps around a curved wall that houses the stairs.
Above this part of the house is a guest suite with two pretty wallpapered bedrooms, a bathroom and a further attic room. On the ground floor below is a sittingroom facing directly south with large windows that make a feature of the beautiful views. Beside the sittingroom is a diningroom, with a feature bay window added by the present owners.
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A door from the diningroom leads through to the first of two kitchens; this is a lovely room, facing south so the sun pours through the large windows and French doors leading to the terrace. The kitchen has a living area, vaulted barrel ceiling, a Stanley cooker and window seats. It leads through to a second kitchen and bootroom, with access to an internal courtyard.
Also off the kitchen is a hallway with the main bathroom. A further wing here has the main bedroom, facing south, with its adjoining en suite, wardrobe and dressingroom. A cosy sittingroom lies beyond it, with a stove and doors leading outside, and past that at the end of this wing are two further bedrooms with a bathroom between them and French doors opening outside.
The house, with a C1 Ber, is set on a three-acre site and has a multitude of terraces and seating areas. It’s studded with mature trees that survived all the recent storms and includes beech, birch, pine, ash and oak and some stunning mature and abundant magnolias, two of which are in full flower over a pond at the bottom of the sweeping lawns.
There are two fenced paddocks to the front of the house and a large stable house designed by Robin Mandal. Covered in solar panels, it comes with two stables and a tack room with a kitchenette and shower, handy for those playing tennis on the adjoining court, which is fully fenced in.
Over the stables is a large loft room, currently full of fascinating family history and memorabilia of the owners. This room could be pressed into all kinds of use, from a teenage hangout to a well-equipped home bar or cinema room.
It’s certainly a home designed for entertaining, as the internal courtyard has a hot tub and just at the back of the house, among the trees bordering the property, is a sauna and shower. Just off the main house is a double garage with loft and surrounding it are storage sheds, for wood, bikes or a handy wine cave.
There’s a primary school in the nearby Dunsany village, Killeen Castle is minutes away and the M3 interchange is a short drive away.
