We are a young family with an interesting house in the Sussex countryside.
We live in what was the coach house of a large 1850's mansion with 30 acres of woodland and gardens.
The formal gardens overlook the Downs to the coast where Brighton is only 30 mins drive away.
This is Sherlock Holmes country: Conan Doyle wrote many of his stories in nearby Crowborough and they are set on the Ashdown Forest.
This is an area of outstanding natural beauty and you can walk directly onto the Forest from the house for long walks with stunning views. The history is that the Ashdown Forest was King Henry VIII's deer hunting park. Deer run around the estate, you will see them!
The house itself is 4 bedroom/ 3 bathroom property which we have renovated with architects so the house is modern on the inside and old on the outside.
The children are 5 and 2 so a variety of toys are available. The family cycles so we have bikes and tag alongs which we take for some of the local seafront cycle rides like along the front at Brighton.
This is an amazingly green county with lots of great traditional pubs, stately homes, art gallleries.
London is only a 45 minute trip on the train from Tunbridge Wells.

Oldlands Hall was built by diamond merchants in the 1850's
It is set in the Ashdown Forest with stunning views from the front grounds over The South Downs which stretch along the South Coast of the UK
We are 30 minutes from the cool town of Brighton which has many restaurants, independent shops, the famous Brighton Pier and all the rock and roll culture of the Mods and Rockers.
For those who like a sedate ice cream by the beach Eastbourne has a Victorian promenade which is gorgeous in winter or summer
London is only a 45 minute train journey away for day trips and shopping trips, and all that London has to offer.
We regularly go up as we both work in London, so its very accessible.
The train either arrives at London Bridge or Charing Cross...right next to Trafalgar Square!
There are some stunning castles to see in Sussex: Bodiam and Arundel are the most amazing but there are also Lewes castle, Chartwell (Winston Churchill's family home) Knole (an amazing house with a bedroom that Queen Elizabeth 1st last slept in 300 years ago!) Sissinghurst Castle (a fairy tale tower and garden)
You can walk onto the 900 acres of forest and moorland which is the Ashdown Forest from the house!
In truth this is an amazing location for country, city and coast. You will experience England at its most beautiful whatever time of year you come. For example Sheffield Park (10 mins away) is famous for its vibrant Autumn landscapes as the leaves are reflected in the huge ornamental lakes there. Wakehurst Place which is affiliated with Kew Gardens is less than half an hour away.
AA Milne: Winnie the Poo: we are 8 miles from Hartfield and closer to Poo Sticks Bridge, where you can visit and play the game yourself (take your own sticks as there arent many left!). AA Milne lived on the Ashdown Forest and his stories are set in the area.

We have to work around the UK school holidays now that Alfie is at school.
We would consider going away around or within any of these holidays:
2 weeks around Christmas
2 weeks around Easter
6 weeks around summer from July to September
There are also a number of mid term one week breaks that we could consider if the destination was shorter haul within Europe

We live here with our two young children Alfie (5 just started school) and Macy (just gone 2 years old)
I am Patrick, i am a self employed media strategist and when i am not working i love spending time in the area here, running, shopping for clothes and music in Brighton, cycling with the kids.
We love the beach and have had many lovely days on the beaches near here this summer.
My wife Clare is a sales director for the famous cinema brand Pearl and Dean.
She loves food and is quite a cook so our kitchen is well equipped and we know all the best places for buying fresh food or eating out.
We love travelling and i am a keen surfer so we have let surf take us to Brasil, Mexico, Australia, Bali, California, France, Costa Rica, Ecuador and i have even surfed in Vietnam.
Our ideal exchange would be to somewhere with a nice mellow wave, gorgeous beaches, nice food!
We are open minded though as we love to travel and see new places

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