The Orchard

Fairford | Gloucestershire

Charming hidden gardens just yards from a vibrant marketplace

The Orchard is built on land once belonging to John Keeble, poet, curate and founder of the Oxford Movement. The two- and three-bedroom properties all have garages and are built in local stone. Through an archway there is a hidden garden square, lined with fruit trees recalling the estate’s orchard origins. Some of the cottages overlook this garden, which has a swimming pavilion and sun terrace to one side.

The estate is just 250 yards from Fairford market place, which offers a wide variety of both contemporary and antique shops and also plays host to a weekly market. Fairford’s church of St Mary is simply one of the best in the country, known primarily for its breathtaking, medieval stained-glass windows, and the RAF Fairford is world-famous for it’s spectacular aerial displays at the air show every July. Opportunities to enjoy the outdoors abound, with the Mill and Trout Farm at Bibury, the 15th-Century ruins by the river in Minster Lovell and the Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens all nearby. Then for days when the weather makes being outside less appealing, there is plenty to see and do in the bustling market towns of Cirencester, Stow-on-the-wold and Burford.