27/08/2026
When you take on a project like Spenford House, you need a stiff upper lip, a stomach of steel and an extraordinary amount of resilience and a large bank ballance.
Saving a building of this age, scale and importance was never going to be straightforward. What I perhaps didn’t anticipate was quite how much opposition would come with it.
Every planning application I submitted was met with objections — including objections to some of the most fundamental work needed simply to save the building, from preserving the historic timber frame to making the rooms watertight.
There have also been neighbours and their friends who have written things about my applications that simply weren’t true, which at times has felt incredibly personal and, frankly, like a vendetta.
And even today, I have had a villager contact my estate agent to tell them that I don’t have permission for something I absolutely do have permission for.
After three years of planning, building, renovating, problem-solving and fighting to protect this incredible house — and having invested my life savings into it — there have been moments when I have genuinely wondered whether it has all been worth it.
Then tonight, I received the most wonderful email.
And suddenly, it reminded me exactly why I did it. ❤️
One lovely message can restore a lot of faith.
So, to all the wonderful people in the village who have stopped me over the fence to say congratulations, who have told me I’ve missed a bit 😂, or simply said, “You’ve done an incredible job” — thank you.
Your kindness has meant more than you probably realise.
Spenford House has been one of the biggest challenges of my life, but seeing this beautiful old building brought back to life makes every battle, every setback and every sleepless night worth it.
Sometimes you just have to keep going, keep believing in what you’re doing and let the finished result speak for itself. ❤️
