A former orphanage, which fell into disrepair, has been transformed into a development of luxury apartments.
Allen House on Ashley Down Road was built in the 19th century and is a Grade II listed building. The £5.5 million scheme by Charles Church Severn Valley sees the first release of apartments go on sale next week.
Allen House originally formed part of a string of five orphan houses, three of which – Cabot House, Davy House, and Brunel House – are currently used by the City of Bristol College. The fourth, Muller House, has been turned into flats.
It was the first of the five barrack-type orphanage buildings to be built with donated money from 1847 to 1870 by Prussian philanthropist George Muller. After the last house had been built in 1870, Muller found himself caring for 2,000 children.
The total renovation of the Victorian orphanage into one, two and three bedroom apartments took xx weeks to complete as Nicola Reed, sales and marketing director for Charles Church Severn Valley, explains: “Allen House is an important building for Bristol and as such needed a sympathetic conversion that not only met our high standards, but retained its historical significance.
“We eagerly anticipate the opening of Allen House and have already received interest from prospective purchasers looking for a unique property in a great location. With schemes such as Help to Buy and NewBuy available to assist purchasers, we don’t anticipate these apartments to be on the market for long.”