Flurry of land and farm launches from Devon to Fife

A farming family which has owned a farm in Devon for more than 80 years is selling up, launching their 195-acre mixed holding on the open market at a guide price of £2.695m.

Higher Lydacott Farm, near Barnstaple, has undulating Grade 3 land, free-draining, slightly acid loam soils, and views across the River Taw estuary.

Selling agent Andrew Dodds of Stags says most of the land is pasture, but a small area is in an arable rotation for cereals.

See also: Good choice of small and medium farms bolster land markets

The farmstead includes a four-bedroom farmhouse in need of modernisation, a three-bedroom cottage, and stone barns that are currently used for stabling and storage.

These barns would be suitable to convert to alternatives uses, subject to planning consent, says Andrew.

Planning consent was secured under Class Q in June 2025 to convert a detached barn to residential use.

Stags is marketing Higher Lydacott Farm as a whole or in up to seven lots.

Cardenbarns Farm, Fife

Cardenbarns Farm © Galbraith

In Scotland, another farm with a mix of both pasture and arable is new to the market too, and this one comes with an unusual diversification – a radio-controlled car track.

Set in a ring-fence, Cardenbarns Farm, at Cardenden, Fife, has 152 acres of mostly Grade 3.1 and 3.2 land. 

A parcel of that land – once used for open cast mining – is now rented to a motocross club and features a radio-controlled car circuit. These enterprises generate a combined annual income of about £7,000.

The farm comes with a range of traditional and modern farm buildings, some requiring repair and upgrading. The three-bedroom farmhouse is south-facing.

Cardenbarns Farm is being sold with a 20-year overage clause, which requires 20% of any uplift in value on the grant of planning consent for non-agricultural use to be passed to the vendor.

Selling agent Galbraith is guiding the farm at offers over £1.35m.

Barforth Hall, North Yorkshire

Barforth Hall © George F White

For buyers in the market for a versatile farm, George F White has launched Barforth Hall, near Richmond, North Yorkshire.

According to the firm’s head of farm sales, Elliot Taylor, the 169-acre farm offers “exceptional character, productivity, and potential’’.  

The land is set in a ring-fence, is farmed in-hand in conjunction with a local farmer, and is supported by a range of modern buildings suited to machinery storage, livestock housing, and grain handling. 

The four-bedroom main house is Grade II listed, and there are four stone-fronted cottages that generate an alternative income as holiday lets.

Traditional barns have a total floor area of more than 220sq m, and there are equestrian facilities including an indoor arena and stabling.

“With its blend of residential, agricultural and leisure elements, Barforth Hall offers outstanding potential for a variety of income streams, from farming and holiday accommodation to equestrian, or diversification ventures such as luxury glamping,” Elliot says.

George F White is guiding the sale at offers over £3.5m.

Richmondshire farmland

Land at Hornby © George F White

The firm is also launching a 56-acre parcel of Grade 3 farmland in the same region, at Hornby in Richmondshire, and is seeking offers of above £620,000.

The land has free-draining loam soils over limestone and sandstone, says the agent’s Elliot Taylor.

The land has recently been used for growing temporary grass leys for silage, but is equally suited to cereal, root cropping or mixed forage rotations, says Elliot.

“This is an appealing acquisition for farmers, investors, and those seeking to expand or establish an agricultural enterprise in this desirable part of North Yorkshire,’’ he says.

West Sussex block

© Batcheller Monkhouse

At just 13 acres, a single field in West Sussex is a modest launch but is unique by virtue of its location, suggests its selling agent.

The land off Windmill Lane, Henfield, is located in a region where launches are “rarely available’’, says Batcheller Monkhouse.

The block has a 180-degree view of the South Downs, sits just outside Henfield village, and the sale comes with no overage stipulation.

For some years, the southerly sloping field has been rented to a tenant for grazing, but the owners – four elderly siblings – are now selling because the land is surplus to their requirements.

Batcheller Monkhouse has set a guide price of £225,000 for the block.