Nethercote Road, Tackley, OX5

A beautifully extended cottage of over 2,000 sq ft complete with fab vaulted ceiling kitchen, 24 ft living room, five bedrooms (one en-suite), garage plus a delightful landscaped garden, in a very popular village with community shop, pub & rail station. Woodstock, Oxford, Bicester are all nearby.

Tackley is an off the beaten track village with a great sense of community, most effectively demonstrated by the community run village shop. Predominantly rather charming old stone houses and farm barns converted in more recent years the village has a main line railway station, with regular trains to and from Banbury, Oxford and London, and is about mile from the Oxford Canal. As you enter the village you pass St Nicholas Church, which has been there since Saxon times. A traditional green with a fine old oak tree forms the centre of the village. Families are well supported with a pre-school OFSTED rated outstanding, a Primary, both in the village, and two fine secondary schools in close proximity

On first glance this is archetypal of the pretty stone cottages so redolent of this gorgeous village, and there is little downside to that! However, the similarity with most ends as you walk in and take a tour. The generously extended downstairs hubs around a stunning, bright and characterful kitchen that really is all things to all people. Day to day family life or the grandest of entertaining; it's perfect for either. Upstairs the house features no less than five bedrooms, with the main including an en-suite. And the outside combines a stunning, secluded terrace with lengthy lawn, beautiful and well-stocked borders, summer house and also a garage. It's difficult to see a downside.

A smart timber entrance door accesses a very useful porch, inside which banks of shelves and coat hooks provide very handy storage. The door behind opens to a large, delightfully bright and welcoming living room of a type not usually seen in a cottage! The proportions are excellent, with the welcome central focus being a charming fireplace fitted with a multi-fuel (wood or coal) stove. Either side, there are alcoves perfectly suite for shelving. To the right, the stairs rise to the floors above. At the rear of the room, what was the original back wall of the house now features two sets of glazed doors as well as a window. Head through the door to the right and this will take you into the kitchen.

Occupying the full width of the house, the rear extension has transformed the whole experience. A beautiful kitchen area to the right features a range of softly pastel units contrasting perfectly with the darker granite worktops, all arranged round a large island complete with sink. To the left, the ceiling is vaulted, criss-crossed by traditional style, a-frame timbers, beneath which there is more than enough space for the most generous of dining tables alongside dressers, easy chairs - whatever you want. Between the two, a long light well in the ceiling floods in wonderful natural light which, combined with all the glazing to the left and rear makes this such a positive and happy space. NB the door to the left leads to the garage, of which more later.

Behind the kitchen area, the utility room hosts yet more units plus a Belfast sink, and there's plumbing for washing machine, dryer etc, ensuring the kitchen space doesn't suffer the noise. Opposite, the cloak room is pristine, simple yet elegant. Beyond the utility, what was the old outhouse has been connected to the main house, producing a wonderful room that is perfectly situated away from the main space to act as a quiet study, music room, perhaps even an annex bedroom if desired. And with exposed stone to some walls and a vaulted ceiling above, it simply oozes character.

Heading upwards, the stairs rise then turn. At the top, first left a very pretty bedroom, which is a generous single or small double, features exposed stone and ceiling timbers. Next door, the very generous main suite continues the theme of ceiling timbers. The window seat at the front is a lovely place to gaze out over the sleepy village beyond. This plus the window opposite ensure it's always light. The proportions are perfect for a generous range of furnishings, with a fitted wardrobe in one corner joining further fitted cupboards up the steps to the rear in providing masses of built-in storage. Thereafter, the en-suite is surprisingly generous, neutral but stylish, with a modern suite that includes a thermostatic shower and a vanity unit.

The rear landing includes an area broad enough for bookshelves, beyond which the family bathroom is equipped with similar sanitary wear to the ensuite, this time with a bath and clean white tiles with aquamarine edging. It is pristine presented, light and bright, and note the bath is unusually large at just under 1.8m long. While it is not ensuite, the rear-most bedroom might as well be due with the bathroom next door. It's another lovely double space, with the eaves features either side of the ceiling giving it shape and texture that is very attractive. And from here the view across the garden is bliss.

From the landing more stairs rise and turn, arriving on the top floor. A dormer window over the landing keeps that theme of light running through the stairwell, and beneath it there are doors hiding the ethernet, TV aerial and telephone cables - a neat touch. The pair of bedrooms up here are both useful and attractive. The first is more compact, a smaller double with a dormer window looking out to the rear garden. Its neighbour next door is much more generously proportioned, a large double with dormer windows to either side, and the gable end wall has fitted cupboards either side of the chimney breast. In addition our vendors have built deep storage cupboards, with those on the right supporting a wide desktop above. This room would be the envy of any teenager (and quite a few adults!).

Outside the house sits back behind the sleepiest of the village lanes, at the far end of which is the Tackley rail halt allowing easy access to London. On street parking to the front is ample with no restriction and low density, but in addition there is a garage attached to the left side of the house, at the rear of which is a door into the garden.

Terraced areas behind the house link up, framed by various stone planters filled with a profusion of different plants. In particular, to the right of the main terrace, the raised planter includes a stunning Wisteria that, luckily, was flowering when we took these images! Gently meandering along the side of the house, it's a delightful and gentle frame to the rear of the house.

Beyond the terrace, a seating area sits behind the vaulted study, and thereafter the garden is mostly lawned, flanked by further beds and stone walls. To the rear, a large shed/summer house sits on a further terraced area, with grey water harvesting, a log store, and more planter beds - the perfect set up for some enthusiastic horticulture. And the 6m well includes pumps ensuring a renewable source of water for the garden. Looking back to the house from this point yields a view down the most delightful, peaceful garden space.

Mains water, electricity, gas CHWest Oxfordshire D CCouncil tax band F?3,446-61 p.a. 2025/26Freehold