From a one-room village school transformed into a five-bedroom rural pile to a flat in a grand Victorian building in London, former school conversions offer unique living spaces. Here are five properties across England and Scotland.
De Beauvoir Town, London
This third-floor two-level apartment in a converted Victorian school is a tutorial on how to maximise space. The double-bedroom area is on the mezzanine level, and there is a study space in the hallway. The upper level overlooks the east-facing open-plan dining and sitting room with large sash windows. The kitchen is separate. Residents have access to a gym, communal gardens and a concierge. It is a few minutes’ walk from numerous pubs and cafes, the Regent’s Canal and Haggerston overground station. Price: £500,000. Contact Winkworth, 020 7354 2480.
Rimington, Lancashire
This five-bedroom rural pile was built in 1850 as a humble one-room village school and has been extended over the years. It has views over farmland towards the Ribble Valley and the Yorkshire Dales. The thick-set oak door in the entrance porch leads to the hall, which has wooden flooring and a wide staircase. The large dining room has a huge bay window and a prominent fireplace. The property sits in 1.2 hectares (three acres) of landscaped gardens and is five miles from the railway station at Clitheroe. Price: £1.795m. Contact Fine & Country, 01200 420 747.
Edinburgh, Midlothian
This home in Turnhouse, a suburb to the west of the city centre, was built in 1819 and was formerly a school. There are four bedrooms and three bathrooms. There is a vaulted living room with a mezzanine, plus a large family room, currently used as an office. It has a five-car garage and an electric car charger and lies behind electric gates. There are several golf courses nearby, as well as a walk along the River Almond to the Firth of Forth. Price: £645,000. Contact Savills, 0131 247 3770.
Bristol
This Grade II-listed Georgian home, once a school, is built from red brick and Bath stone. It sits in an elevated position in the Kingsdown neighbourhood of Bristol, to the north of the city centre. Despite its roots, the four-bedroom, four-bathroom house is imaginatively decorated with nods to mid-century design. The sitting room has geometric wallpaper, turquoise wall panelling and a fireplace. The kitchen has exposed brick walls and parquet flooring. Its floor-to-ceiling windows open on to the garden, which offers views over the city. Price: £1.25m. Contact Elephant, 0117 3700 556.
Callington, Cornwall
On the edge of the Tamar Valley, on the road that runs south from Launceston to Plymouth, is this market town. Here is a Georgian property that started out as a family home and, in recent years, has been a residential art school. It has a strong sense of history with the original oak doors still hanging and Minton tiles. There are five interlocking living spaces and five en suite bathrooms plus a vaulted, light-filled studio on the top floor of the attached coach house. The walled garden includes a 200-year-old rose, a central lawn and pond. Price: £530,000. Contact Inigo, 020 3687 3071.
