10, Crumps Butts, Bicester, OX26 6EB

A period two bedroom mid-terrace for refurbishment Key Facts for Buyers: EPC: Rating of C (72). Council Tax: Band B Approx. £1,916 per annum.

Ground Floor: Part glazed PVC front door to: Living room: 11’10 x 11’8. Front aspect PVC window, laminate flooring, radiator, rcd/mcb electricity consumer unit, central heating thermostat.

Kitchen: 11’6 x 6’11. Rear aspect half glazed PVC door to the yard, rear aspect PVC window, original flagstone floor, dated kitchen units past their working lifespan. Ground floor bathroom: 8’3 x 4’9.

Rear aspect PVC window, extractor fan, radiator, original flagstone floor, metal enameled bath with ‘Triton Enrich’ electric shower over, dual flush close coupled WC, wash hand basin.

Period cottage door. Staircase off the living room to:- Upstairs: Landing: Loft hatch, partially original planked floor. Bedroom one: 12’2 x 12’0.

Front aspect PVC window, plain plaster ceiling, Art Deco painted period door with brass handle, radiator. Bedroom two: 11’11 x 8’10.

Rear aspect PVC window, plain plaster ceiling, radiator, over-stairs bulkhead cupboard enclosing ‘Potterton 24 Eco he’ boiler. Outside: Front garden: Open plan to the other gardens to the front.

Refer to Plan. Old privvy: Refer to plan & photos. Rear yard: About 12ft (3.6m) square. Refer to overview photo.

History & General Overview The name ‘Crumps Butts’ probably derives from land owned by a man called Crump that was also used for Archery practice.

Butts are pieces of land that have a small ridge with a ledge to support archery targets.

They were in common use in the 1640s during the civil war when it was compulsory for men of fighting age to practice archery daily, typically every lunchtime, and oddly, as one of those historical anomalies, the law to protect that time for practice remains on the statute book and is still inscribed into law today.

For safety, King Charles 1strelocated from London to Oxford, which became the temporary Royalist capital of England, much to the disgust of the Oxford Colleges, which were forced to give up their space, at great cost, to accommodate the King and his entourage.

Note: What follows is an observation rather than a survey or guarantee as to the condition of the property.

Buyers are recommended to satisfy themselves as to the condition of the property by means of an RICS survey.

No contract content, warranty, or guarantee can or should be derived or assumed from these comments. This property is what is politely referred to as a doer upper.

It probably dates from the 1800s at a guess, but could be older and has been re-roofed possibly as late as the mid-late1900’s.

It may have been one of a terrace of workers cottages for the old bell foundry works in Bell Lane, which specialised in casting church bells.

It maybe part of the land package sold off by the Duke of Suffolk along with The Bell pub, going back to the period shortly after the dissolution of the monasteries.

There is a line of what originally were the outside privies, now in a bit of a shabby state, which runs in line at the back edge of the courtyard gardens to the front.

One, or possibly two of these seem to be associated with the property, but it will be worth checking the title and conveyancing history through your solicitor.

The land registry plan refers only to one. Apparently, there is a covered up well somewhere in one of the front gardens and historic documents from around 1537 refer to it.

Back in the day, The Bell, The Angel and The Plough would have been working highway inns when what is now Sheep Street and North Street was the main road from London to Birmingham and the olden days’ equivalent of the M40.

The seating area on North Street ‘Tollgate Seats’ by Hailles Gardens being the site of the toll booth for the old highway in the days of horsedrawn carriages and the likes of Dick Turpin, of course.

It’s hard to tell the condition exactly without going up in the roof space but the ridge line is very straight, and the roof tiles are lying impressively true to shape without any noticeable distortion on the visible front side.

At a guess the roof timbers are probably in very good condition.

On the assumption that it was built well before World War One when the timber stock in the United Kingdom was far better quality than now, having been seasoned for years before being cut, drying out naturally, not kilned as it is today.

Two world wars used up our timber stocks. The stove in the living room is a Chinese import and may not have a Hetas certificate. The tenant may make claim to it.

The chimney has been re-topped for the top few courses, at a guess in the mid-late 1900’s. Common sense would suggest it was done at the same time as the roof, though this is not confirmed.

The lead flashing work on the chimney looks sound. There appears to be a single slipped tile, bottom row far right.

The front elevation has been rendered, probably to hide unsightly brickwork or for fashion’s sake and appears in decent condition, so the mix was probably good at the time of application bearing in mind how long it’s been there.

There is a hairline crack above the window that needs filling but that looks cosmetic rather than structural. The gutters haven’t been cleared for a while, evidenced by plant material growing in them.

The floors in the kitchen and bathroom have original period flag stones and are quite possibly laid straight onto the ground.

They may have been recycled from the old foundry and North Street building floors or earlier buildings like those along Sheep Street which date from the 1600s.

These flag stones could be quite valuable from a reclaim point of view for either restoration or reclaim sale.

The boiler is a Potterton 24 Eco he and running heating circuits on 15mm copper bore so no dis-functional microbore pipes to worry about.

We are advised there is an existing gas safety certificate, and it has been regularly serviced.

The windows present in good order with a building control registration for 2012 (refer to Cherwell Council website). Their operation seems good and smooth for those I inspected.

There are a couple of doors of note, the main bedroom door is made to an Art Deco pattern and probably dates from the 1920s, and the kitchen door is an old cottage original with good patina.

The flooring is covered upstairs but I would expect them to be solid timber 5/8thinch or 3/4 inch plank rather than chipboard.

Downstairs, there is old laminate in the living room and those all-important flag stones in the bathroom and kitchen. The yard to the rear is about 12ft square.

All-in-all an exciting refurbishment opportunity tucked away in a central location and although tatty inside, hence no internal photos, a chance to fit a budget.

The roof, boiler and windows look okay. The kitchen and bathroom are in urgent need of re-fitting.

We’ll probably need to do block viewings to work around the tenant for whom there is an exit strategy being organised by the current landlord.

To book a viewing, or have a no-nonsense chat about the house, call on or e-mail .