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Rare opportunity to buy an exceptional Scottish Borders farm

Over Kirkhope, an exceptional hill farm covering more than 3,100 acres in the Scottish Borders and home to Scotland’s largest new wildflower meadow, has come to market for offers over £4,585, 000.

The farm, which features a delightful refurbished and extended 6-bedroom farmhouse, two separate 2-bedroom cottages and a good range of modern and traditional buildings, will be sold as a whole or in three lots.

James Denne, Property Consultant at GSC Grays, said:” It’s very rare that an impressive upland sheep farm of this size in the extraordinary landscape of the Scottish Borders comes to market. Over Kirkhope also boasts one of the UK’s largest native tree planting schemes and is ideally suited to regenerative livestock farming with a wonderful opportunity to add further to the farm’s natural capital and biodiversity while protecting Scotland’s countryside.”

Over Kirkhope has Ettrick Water, a Special Area of Conservation, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and an important tributary of the River Tweed, flowing along its southern boundary. It is a productive upland farm, supporting a hefted flock of Blackface and North Country Cheviot sheep. Approximately 500 lambs are sold off each year and the farm has scope to increase its sheep numbers significantly, support a herd of cattle and invest in regenerative farming.

The farm has around 750 breeding ewes, 935 acres of broadleaf woodland plus 2,084 acres of open hill and pasture (heather and white grass), 12 acres of wildflower meadow and 93 acres of in bye grazing.

An audit is due to be undertaken offering a significant “offsetting” opportunity to secure benefits for biodiversity through the established woodland habitats featuring oak, beech and Scots Pines. There is also the option to expand the programme with the farm an exemplar in Scotland’s Nature Investment Partnership.

Over Kirkhope supports a huge range of species, including woodcock, snipe, curlew, lapwing, osprey, golden eagles, black grouse, otter, red squirrels, 144 varieties of moth, spawning salmon and trout with just over 3 miles of single bank trout fishing on the fast flowing Ettrick Water and 6 acres of trout ponds.

Situated 23 miles from Selkirk, the property is around an hour and a half’s drive from both Edinburgh and Carlisle. Edinburgh offers an international airport, major road connections, and East Coast Main Line rail links, while Carlisle provides access to the West Coast Main Line and key routes north and south. Regular livestock markets take place at St Boswells, Longtown, Carlisle, Wooler and Lanark.

Over Kirkhope is on the market through the GSC Grays Alnwick office (Tel: 01665 568310) with a guide price of offers over £4.585 million for the whole. Alternatively, the property is available in separate lots: Lot 1 offers over £1.15 million; Lot 2 offers over £3.2 million and Lot 3 offers over £235,000

Article by

James Denne
MRICS
Agency Consultant

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