Peckarmans Wood III
London SE26
Architect: Austin Vernon & Partners
Register for similar homes"The Dulwich Estate: A hillside haven in south-east London." (Mid-century Magazine)
This wonderful four-bedroom end-of-terrace Modern house, designed by Malcolm Pringle of Austin Vernon & Partners in 1963, can be found on Peckarmans Wood on the Dulwich Estate. Widely considered to be the finest of all the 1960s Dulwich houses, they offer outstanding spaces in a beautifully landscaped and peaceful setting.
The ‘ranch’ style houses on Peckarmans Wood rarely become available. This particular house is presented in excellent condition and has been carefully maintained and sympathetically updated over the years by the current owners, retaining or replenishing many of the most interesting original details.
Due to the sloping nature of the site, accommodation is divided over three bright half floors and the main entrance at the front of the house sits a half level above the rear garden. The lower ground floor, on the garden side, includes two bedrooms, a bathroom and a utility. The entrance hall, kitchen-dining room, a second bathroom and a bedroom are on the upper ground / entrance level, with the living room and a further bedroom / study on the first floor. The kitchen has been beautifully modernised with sleek and minimal appliances, a clever contrast to the rich warmth of the cedar cladding.
The private rear garden leads onto the extensive communal grounds and there is a small front garden and enclosed patio. Beneath the house is a large storage space, which some neighbouring houses have excavated to create further living space.
The living room is a central feature of the ‘ranch’ houses, a fantastically bright space with a pitched roof and an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling glazing that looks out across the communal grounds towards central London. Clerestory windows on the opposite wall give the room a double aspect, and a large picture window looks through to the dining room.
The house has a double garage en-bloc and there is unallocated parking for residents on the estate.
An area well known for its exceptional Modern architecture, the Dulwich Estate is composed of approximately 1,500 acres in South East London and includes numerous private roads that are managed by the Estate. It is noted for its concentration of outstanding 1950s and 60s design, much of it by Austin Vernon & Partners. Ranging from large detached houses with large gardens to rows of smaller terraced houses, the mix of properties as well as the exceptional landscaping and planting make for an appealing and unique place to live.
The property is surrounded by Dulwich and Sydenham Woods, which are a wildlife nature reserve. This is combined with Dulwich and Sydenham Golf Course as well as an allotment and sports club grounds to provide an unbroken green space as far as Dulwich Park and Lordship Lane. Other local attractions include The Dulwich Picture Gallery, The Horniman Museum and the local town centres of Crystal Palace and Dulwich Village.
Crystal Palace, which has previously been named as number five on Lonely Planet’s “Greatest little-known neighbourhoods in the world”, is a 15-minute walk away and is a vibrant area with award-winning restaurants and bars as well as having a thriving arts and music scene. Dulwich Village is also a 15-minute walk from the house, and the street is well placed for OFSTED ‘outstanding’ primary and secondary state schools as well as some of the best private schools in London.
Peckarmans Wood is a short walk on a footpath to Sydenham Hill station, which runs services to London Victoria (13 minutes), Blackfriars (20 minutes) and City Thameslink/Farringdon (22 minutes). Connecting trains (via Sydenham) will take you to Canada Water in 20 minutes and Shoreditch High Street in 30 minutes.
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
Peckarmans Wood is situated in part of a large area of land in South East London that has been maintained for over 400 years by the Dulwich Estate. In the 1950s the estate ran into difficulty. The area had been badly damaged during the Second World War, and lease lengths were running so short that banks were no longer happy to lend on the houses and selling was becoming more and more difficult. People were leaving the area and renting their houses out.
In 1954, Austin Vernon & Partners were called on to design a scheme that would rejuvenate the Dulwich Estate. Vernon himself had formerly been a pupil at Dulwich College from 1898 -1901 and so knew this area well, whilst his uncle Frederick Austin Vernon (1882-1972) had already been the surveyor and architect to the Dulwich Estate.
By 1957 Vernon’s first scheme of building was completed. The blocks on Farquhar Road were the first to be built and they proved to be such a success that a second scheme began, encompassing the nearby Lymer Road and beyond. Over the next 20 years more than 2,000 new homes were designed by Austin Vernon & Partners, including those of Giles Coppice, resulting in a remarkable area of 1950s and 60s-era architecture.
The houses and flats were designed to a high standard, with use of large expanses of glass, open rooms and central heating. Also quite remarkable was the landscaping that was planned for the estate. The roads were separated from pedestrian areas and large areas were given over to communal gardens and spinneys. The result was an estate which was and remains beautifully designed, verdant and peaceful.
