UK Property: A new move

June Cranstone’s moving experience

When June Cranstone moved into her new home at Stapleford Court in Stalbridge, she certainly wasn’t new to the area. Stalbridge was home to her ancestors and, as a child, June spent school holidays with her grandparents there and during the war she even attended the local school!

Stapleford Court is a delightful retirement development which comprises 13 attractive cottages, each with its own conservatory or garden room, set around a beautifully landscaped courtyard in the heart of Stalbridge.

Landscaped courtyard at Stapleford Court

A good place to live

“I often came to Stalbridge to visit my sister and while here I noticed that a new Archstone development was being built – although that was at a very early stage of development,” says June. “I had been widowed and was living in a village where there wasn’t even a shop. I don’t drive and buses were very infrequent. I thought Stapleford Court would be a good place for me to live, because everything is within walking distance.”

Stapleford Court is ideally located for the local supermarket, post office, the traditional family butcher’s, the chemist, the doctor’s and the dental surgery and a variety of other shops. The local library is almost on the doorstep of the development!

“I expressed my interest in the new development and Archstone updated me on a regular basis,” says June. “Selling my own house wasn’t too difficult but I dropped the price quite a lot. I thought it was very much a case of ‘a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,’ as I didn’t know when another buyer would come along and I would have been really disappointed if I’d missed out on the house I wanted at Stapleford Court. The company was flexible as far as the price of my new house was concerned which helped me to buy.”

Tea and chocolate biscuits

In some ways, June was sad to leave her former home where she had lovely neighbours but living in a village without facilities wasn’t practical and she had a very large garden that she couldn’t maintain any more.  June’s former home held many memories but she also has plenty of memories of Stalbridge – and a box of photographs that she intends to start sorting out!

June Cranstone in her new kitchen

“I know Stalbridge well from years gone by and have lots of happy memories. I also have a sister and a niece who live here,” adds June. “The main High Street hasn’t changed so much although a lot of housing has been built since the war years when I was at school here.

There’s a large new supermarket – Dike & Son. The Dike family has had an independent grocery store in the town since 1851 and I remember ‘old Mr Dike’ who must have been the great-grandfather of the present Mr Dike bringing the bread round and delivering it straight onto the kitchen table!”

When June first moved into Stapleford Court, it was still a building site and she used to enjoy the banter of the construction team who persuaded her to give them chocolate biscuits with their tea! Now the development is finished, June is looking forward to new neighbours moving in. “This is a lovely place to live,” concludes June. “There are two communal gardens and I look out onto both of them. Now it’s finished, it is a beautiful development!”

For further information on Stapleford Court, contact Archstone on 01963 364106. Prices for a delightful cottage at Stapleford Court start from just £275,000. The website is at www.archstone.co.uk.