Home Farmhouse

Home Farmhouse, Fen Ditton

Farmhouse and attached outbuilding, formerly a service range. Early 17th century, with 18th and 19th century additions and alterations, refurbished in 2006.

The building is timber-framed construction, the framing later encased in 19th century Gault brick. It is roofed with banded plain tile, with a rebuilt central ridge stack and an added gable stack at the east end. Secondary stacks serve the rear 19th century range and the side of the advanced gable to the street frontage.

The house follows a 3-cell lobby entrance plan with an advanced wing to the south-east, a linked parallel service range to the rear, and an added 19th century former dairy to the rear wall of the main house.

The south front of the house displays 2 storeys of 4 bays with an advanced gabled bay to the east end and a 20th century gabled porch enclosing the original doorway. The first floor has 3 horizontal sash windows with multiple panes, and an 8 over 8 pane sliding sash to the ground floor to the right of the doorway. A horizontal sliding sash window of the ground floor serves the advanced gable further right. The east gable carries a massive brick stack of stepped profile on the north side. The rear elevation contains multi-pane horizontal sliding sashes to ground and first floor openings of the main range, and single 6 over 6 pane sash frames to each floor of the 19th century extension to the rear. A 20th century part-glazed porch stands at the east end, and a 19th century lean-to occupies the angle of the main range and 19th century wing to the west end. The west gable has 2 ground floor window openings now fitted with 20th century cross frames.

The interior plan centres on a lobby entrance to the west giving access to a central hall, a heated parlour to the west, and a service bay including the advanced gabled wing to the east end. Most rooms are enriched with early 17th century panelling and carved ornamentation. The former central hall and parlour have back-to-back fireplaces with the main stair rising against the rear wall behind the hearths. The west parlour contains an axial beam encased in boarding incised with lozenge decoration and supported on a fluted pilaster with an Ionic capital at the west end. The room is fitted with run-through panelling incorporating a frieze with lozenge decoration. The hearth features a richly carved overmantle flanked by pilasters with Ionic capitals, and a corner cupboard with glazed doors added in the 19th century. The central hall retains partially re-set run-through panelling with dado panels incised with lozenge and floral decoration. The overmantle to the hearth displays re-set 16th century style linenfold panels and end medallions with Renaissance style heads. The east end room, originally unheated, has a chamfered axial beam. The main stair is of splat baluster form with pierced and tapered balusters. All upper floor rooms of the 17th century range are panelled; the east and west end rooms contain fireplaces with iron grates, that to the east end fitted with Delft tiles.

The outbuilding to the rear has a plain tile roof covering with partial survival of thin scantling timber-framing to the western half, replaced elsewhere in brick externally. The south elevation displays 3 doorways with plank doors, a 12-pane window at the east end, and a projecting oven structure at the south-west corner. The interior contains a lofted west section with stud partitions and wattle and daub infill panels, a substantial end wall hearth at the west end, 2 coppers, and a bread oven.

The house forms a group with the Dovecote and Granary to Home Farm, Mulberry House, and Manor Farmhouse.