Church Street, Barrow Upon Soar
On a sunny afternoon, the light glistens on the rippling River Soar, inviting you into a seemingly tranquil part of the world.
But Barrow Upon Soar is as lively as it is peaceful, situated just three miles from the town of Loughborough, and with the countryside and beautiful Charnwood Forest on its doorstep.
Interestingly, the emblem of the village is the plesiosaurus, named after a fossil found here in 1851. Workmen digging in a lime pit near the village unearthed the four-metre reptile nicknamed ‘The Kipper’ - a prehistoric marine creature that was once common in Leicestershire.
Its image is a noticeable focal point around the village, as I discovered upon the ‘Fossil Trail’, which provides an entertaining overview of village history.
Alongside its natural and historical splendour, Barrow is a residential and industrial area, with boating playing an important role.
The road linking Barrow and Sileby has two industrial estates providing local employment, and there are also many small businesses in the heart of the village.
And this village truly has a heart, with its well-established network of local organisations - most of them affiliated to the very active BUSCA (Barrow Upon Soar Community Association).
Scouts, Cubs, Brownies and Rainbows keep the children busy, and adults have a choice of activities, too, with clubs for drama, local history, dancing, gardening and other interests.
The local community college is also the venue for many events, and has a swimming pool and other leisure facilities, while several pubs in the area stage entertainment and themed events such as quizzes, live jazz and curry evenings.
Barrow has a primary and a secondary school, as does the neighbouring village of Quorn.
Property in Barrow Upon Soar
Barrow Upon Soar has a good variety of housing including contemporary apartments, traditional terraced homes, modern semis, large detached properties and an above-average number of bungalows.
Around 38 per cent of the homes are detached, while semis and terraced homes make up 55 per cent. The village has a population of around 5,000 people.
Two major roads into the village, Cotes Road and Melton Road, boast some stunning, substantial properties with large mature gardens and sweeping driveways.
South of the village, Mill Lane, and more centrally, Church Street and High Street, feature individually designed detached, family homes.
Recent developments in the village include Marans Mews with its 14 two-bedroom apartments, including duplex and penthouse properties, with landscaped gardens and parking, located just five minutes' walk from the train station.
Trinity Park, on the western edge of Barrow-upon-Soar, features everything from two-bed apartments to five-bedroomed detached family homes. Beautifully landscaped and with a wonderful sense of space, these contemporary homes off Cotes Road have created a popular and desirable neighbourhood.
Meadow Grange in Willow Road offers affordable two-bed flats and houses, and three, four and five-bed properties such as townhouses and prime detached homes. Individually designed, they reflect the traditional characteristics of the local area, including touches such as cottage-style rendering.
Buyers: Everyone from first-time buyers through to retirees.
Surrounding Areas
1. Quorn
Where is it? Quorn is a popular, picture-perfect village just off the A6 between Leicester and Loughborough. Previously sliced in two by the old A6, the new bypass has reinstated a pleasant, relaxed environment, with good local shops, pubs and restaurants.
More than 85 per cent of the 5,000-strong population own their home; housing in Quorn is predominantly detached, making up more than 51 per cent of the village’s stock.
What’s there? To the south west of the village, there's a plentiful supply of dream homes in long, leafy roads surrounded by farmland.
Streets such as Buddon Lane, Station Road and Wyvenhoe Drive are three such gems, housing handsome properties in expansive grounds; ranging in age, these homes are highly sought-after and command a premium.
Around Church Lane, in the heart of Quorn and its conservation area, there are a number of period, cottage-style homes with fabulous rendering which have real ‘chocolate box’ appeal.
There are also terraced houses and small, more affordable, homes in streets such as School Lane and Sarson Street.
This conservation location boasts beautiful original features such as granite walls, wrought iron fences and churchyard gates, period lighting columns and cobbled streets, and it is a popular area for buyers.
At the modern end of the property scale, Charnwood Place, situated off Meynell Road, has been designed to embrace the surroundings of this historic village and the modern lifestyles of the families that live there.
Its 31 homes, unique in style, include three, four and five-bedroom detached homes, three-bed townhouses, and two-bedroom semi-detached properties.
Buyers: Again, Quorn has a broad appeal, attracting a whole range of buyers.
2. Old Woodhouse
Where is it? The highly sought after rural location of Old Woodhouse nestles in some of Leicestershire’s most attractive rolling countryside, between the larger villages of Woodhouse Eaves and Quorn.
It is approximately 12 miles north of Leicester city, and four miles south of Loughborough, and is a noticeably affluent area. It is home to a tiny population of around 400 people.
What's there? This picturesque village, with its mixture of cottages and large modern houses, is one of the most expensive places to live in the county.
Sheltered by the scenic backdrop of ancient Charnwood Forest, properties are distinctive, and make use of fabulous local materials such as granite and Swithland slate roofing.
School Lane is a particularly attractive street, where property is set back from the roadside and fronted by sweeping lawns. The privacy of conifer and beech hedging frame the properties which also feature paddocks and stables.
Equally, Forest Drive is home to properties with period integrity and character such as grade II listed detached cottages. Other prime streets include Beaumanor Gardens and Rushey Lane.
Buyers: Wealthy professionals, established families, and retired people.
Living in Barrow Upon Soar
Transport:
Road: Barrow Upon Soar is a central location for travel to Leicester, Nottingham and Derby, with the A46 and A6 road links nearby.
Train: Barrow has its own railway station for easy commuting to Leicester and Loughborough, with mainline rail links to London from Leicester station.
Bus: There are good bus services from Barrow into Leicester and neighbouring villages, including Sileby and Mountsorrel.
Air: Both Birmingham and East Midlands Airports are relatively close.
Shopping:
High Street in Barrow Upon Soar is more like the High Street of a small town than a village.
It has a whole parade of shops which include a supermarket, newsagent, dry cleaner, bakery, florist and pharmacy, and other essential services such as a filling station and a Post Office, and there's free car parking near the centre.
The village also has a dentist, chiropodist, optician, hairdresser, art gallery, estate agents, and an upholstered furniture shop.
The nearby town of Loughborough is home to a recently developed retail park, The Rushes, as well as the specialist shopping area of Churchgate and the Carillon Court Indoor Shopping Centre.
Eating and Drinking:
If you fancy eating out or having a takeaway, there’s a choice of English, Indian, Chinese or pizza in Barrow Upon Soar.
Restaurants include The Bengal Tandoori & Balti Restaurant in Bridge Street, while favourite watering holes such as Riverside Inn, The Navigation Inn and The Three Crowns pull in the residents.
Quorn is a very busy village when it comes to eating and drinking. As well as a host of takeaways, restaurants include the Chinese Royal Chequers, Quorn Grange Hotel, Thai Rainbow Restaurant, Amirul Tandoori Restaurant, fine French dining at The Grayson Restaurant, Tandoori Empire Restaurant, the Italian Ferrari’s Trattoria and The Quorn Exchange.
Public houses include The Quorndon Fox, The Royal Oak, The White Hart, The Manor House, The Apple Tree, The White Horse, The Royal Oak and Blacksmiths Arms.
Sports:
The village has a sporty culture with groups including the Barrow Runners club for fell running, road racing and running; Team Brigade cycling group; Barrow Swimming Club for children at Humphrey Perkins Community College, and Barrow Town Football Club who train at Riverside Park Sports Ground in Barrow Road, Quorn.
Additionally, Quorn has a Cricket Club, a Pony Club, and accessible activities including Judo, aerobics, keep fit, swimming, tennis, bowls, basketball and horse riding, plus a Wildfowling and Conservation Club which holds activities including fishing, dog training, ferreting, and vermin control.
Leisure:
Humphrey Perkins Community College is home to many community events, and has a swimming pool and other leisure facilities.
The active BUSCA (Barrow-Upon-Soar Community Association) offers something for everyone, from dancing and drama to gardening and history.
The Great Central Railway in Loughborough is the UK’s only double track, main line heritage railway.
Originally a main line from Sheffield to London, the eight mile preserved section between Loughborough and Leicester is fully operational and its four stations reflect a different period of the railway’s 109 year history.
Parks and Open Spaces:
This is one of Leicestershire’s most scenic areas, surrounded by farmland and many country walks, with bridleways through Bradgate Park, Swithland Woods and up Beacon Hill, all within a few miles.
Closer to the home, Beaumanor Park encompasses the fabulous grounds surrounding Beaumanor Hall in Woodhouse. A lovely retreat, the impressive Hall was built during the 19th Century for the wealthy Herrick family and is surrounded by beautiful gardens and parkland.
It was purchased in the mid-1970s by the Leicestershire County Council, and is now a popular conference and education Centre.