Source/Archive record SCH7065 - Cheers Green Farmhouse, Free Green Lane, Over Peover, Cheshire East: Heritage Assessment

This report relates to works affecting Cheers Green Farmhouse, Free Green Lane, Over Peover, Cheshire East, a Grade II nationally-designated heritage asset. Formerly a working farm, it has ceased to be used as such and is currently unoccupied. Cheers Green Farmhouse is dated 1720, but the site is probably considerably older, perhaps of medieval origin; the house was built by the Jackson family, yeomen recorded in Over and Lower Peover from the 17th century. It is a good example of a small farmhouse built of brick in the classical style that was displacing sub-medieval building traditions in rural Cheshire by the early 18th century: a tall, two-unit, two-and-a-half storey structure whose symmetrical façade fronts a double-depth plan. Behind its relatively unaltered elevations are retained many original features such as firehoods, panelled doors and a sunken dairy. During the 19th century the house was enlarged via the addition of a single-storey outshut containing a scullery; other changes at this period included provision of a sash window in the parlour and alterations to the staircase. Cheers Green Farmhouse is accompanied by a group of outbuildings, and while these are of less interest, they form an ensemble that can be experienced as a historic group amid an unspoilt rural setting. The owners of Cheers Green Farmhouse are seeking Listed Building Consent for internal and external alterations, along with replacement of the outshut by a two-storey extension. In accordance with national planning guidance concerning the historic environment, this assessment is intended to provide the design and planning processes with an account of the significance of the building, and the impact of the proposal upon that significance. As a Grade II listed building, Cheers Green Farmhouse is of national significance for its architectural and historic interest, which is augmented by its group value and setting. The proposal seeks to return the farmhouse to viable use, and in the main will preserve or enhance those elements and features from which its significance is derived.