Georgian country house transformed into luxury retirement apartments by Purcell
Old age never looked so appealing at this grand restoration of a Grade II Listed Georgian building into 23 luxury retirement properties. It’s dandy being a man about the house

Sevenoaks in Kent is about to welcome a new high-end development; the final touches to the transformation of the stately home of Wildernesse House into a series of grand apartments, have just been added by lead architects Purcell. Yet this is no ordinary residential scheme; Wildernesse House is developer PegasusLife's latest offering in the retirement market, making this one of the most luxurious properties in its field.
Purcell is behind the full restoration and renovation project, turning this Grade II Listed Georgian building (which can be traced back to the 13th and 14th-centuries) into 23 high-end retirement residences. The apartments are beautifully restored and richly kitted out with a mix of modern and heritage furniture, but this is not just about the residential interiors; the scheme has some top-notch amenities and common spaces to boot.
Wildernesse House was featured in the Wallpaper* September issue 2019 (W*246) ‘Beau Selector’ fashion shoot photographed by Marili Andre and styled by Jérôme André. Thanks to PegasusLife (for more information contact: +44 1732 510 162)
Services include spa facilities (comprising a swimming pool, therapy rooms and a gym) and communal, social spaces for the residents. The aim was to reflect the atmosphere of a traditional country estate. Original features, such as decorative plasterwork, fireplaces, joinery and ironmongery, were maintained and shown off throughout.
‘We took great care to subdivide the building into apartments with the minimum possible intervention', says Purcell's Graham Epking-Crane. ‘The project is a testament to Purcell's ability to sympathetically adapt and transform a historic building for compatible modern use, ensuring its regeneration and survival for the future. Wildernesse House is now all set for the next chapter in its fascinating history'.
And while the main house, whose interiors have just been unveiled, offers a selection of one and two bedroom apartments of different layouts, the wider estate is set to also include eight brand new two-bedroom mews houses by Morris+Company, created in the location of a former stable block – the same architect who was also behind the new pavilion and restaurant on the grounds – so, watch this space...
INFORMATION
purcelluk.com
Thanks to PegasusLife
pegasuslife.co.uk/wildernessehouse
Tel: +44 1732 510 162
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Slate is an ultra-simple EV truck intended as an affordable and customisable workhorse
Slate designer Tisha Johnson discusses her role at the US electric truck start-up, a company that wants its customers to have complete freedom of expression
-
Teenage Engineering switches to the dark side with the Field System Black series
None more black: TE’s studio in a pocket is reissued in a new matte black finish to match the cult audio company’s OP-XY sequencer
-
The world of Bart Prince, where architecture is born from the inside out
For the Albuquerque architect Bart Prince, function trumps form, and all building starts from the inside out; we revisit a profile from the Wallpaper* archive, first published in April 2009
-
Inside Abbey Road's refresh: touring the legendary studio's new interior
Abbey Road gets an interior refresh by Threefold Architects, bringing the legendary London recording studio in tune with the 21st century
-
The Serpentine Pavilion 2025 is ready to visit, ‘an exhibition you can use’
The Serpentine Pavilion 2025 is ready for its public opening on 6 June; we toured the structure and spoke to its architect, Marina Tabassum
-
A meticulously crafted artist’s space in east London evokes the area’s long creative history
Maich Swift Architects’ artist’s space has radically reconfigured a Victorian terraced house, transforming it into a contemporary live/work interior
-
Welcome to Omved Gardens, north London’s hidden green oasis
This secret space in Highgate is relaunching as a vibrant community hub with new spaces, activities and exhibitions
-
This contemporary cabin cantilevers over a Scottish loch
Rock Cove, Cameron Webster Architects’ contemporary cabin in Argyll, Scotland, makes the most of its wild setting
-
What to see at the London Festival of Architecture 2025
June is all about the London Festival of Architecture 2025; we browsed the over 450-event rich programme for its highlights, so you won't have to
-
V&A East Storehouse is a new London museum, but not as you know it
Designed by DS+R, the V&A East Storehouse immerses visitors in history as objects of all scales mesmerise, seemingly ‘floating’ in all directions
-
Timeless yet daring, this Marylebone penthouse 'floats' on top of a grand London building
A Marylebone penthouse near Regent’s Park by design studio Wendover is transformed into a light-filled family home