Going back to school

By Rose Martin

Now up for sale with Valerie Parkes of Sherry FitzGerald, it wears a whole new look since it was first built towards the end of the 19th century.

Ideal for a family (it has up to five bedrooms), it's now on offer at €280,000 and the price reflects its situation at least a half hour's commute to Cork city, says Ms Parkes, but she adds that it's just a five-minute drive from Glanmire.

Totally renovated, re-plastered and re-wired, the Old Schoolhouse comes with oodles of space inside and it also has a large garden for children, dogs, cats etc with enough room left over for some flower beds.

The main entrance porch leads on to the living room and kitchen and there is a small front garden allowing a space between the house and the main road in the village.

At 28' by 18', the big kitchen has fitted units at one end and an old brick firebreast, with wood-burning stove at the other.

The room has a solid, wooden floor, exposed beams and a range of units, including a central island. It has direct access to the cloakroom/utility at one end and a central corridor at the other.

The living room is smaller at 16' by 17', but is good-sized nonetheless and it comes with a two-toned, marble fireplace and two windows overlooking the front.

One of the more unusual rooms in the house is the study, with its curved wall inset with coloured and clear glass blocks. As with the rest of the house, colour is used to good effect here.

The master bedroom faces to the front, while all of the other bedrooms are at the back: this and one other bedroom are en suite and the two remaining rooms share a main bathroom.

Also included is a large double garage, which connects to the utility room, and to the rear is a timber deck and built-in barbecue area.

The new school is just down the road and there is one shop and one pub in Knockraha. The city is far enough away, but not too far and the location is also handy for the N8 to Dublin.

At the price, the house offers good value , says Mr Parkes. It would, she says, suit buyers looking for a rural property, that's not remote and has easy access to Cork city.