We’re always looking for talented, conscientious people to join our family team, and we’ve recently created a new careers webpage to showcase all our opportunities. Take a look at all the Skipton Properties jobs we’re currently recruiting for here. Right now we have several construction roles open, including groundworker, pipe layer and concreter – take a look!
We’ve made it super easy to apply too, with a function to upload your CV and covering letter. Follow us on LinkedIn too, for more company and recruitment news.
The Larkin – a four bedroom townhouse at Ebor Mills – already has loads to recommend it, from its luxury specification to its expansive living space, the double aspect outside space to the large garage, and if you reserve now we’ll include flooring in the purchase price!
The Larkin is mid terrace, shown to the right of the tower in the image above. As you can see, this expansive home is set over three storeys. The lower ground floor is the heart of the home, with a huge open plan living space that features a customisable island kitchen with 90cm Rangemaster Professional+ stove, Zanussi appliances and quartz work surfaces (see the image below showing a former show home with a similar spec for an idea of how the kitchen could look) and a combined WC and utility room. French doors lead out onto the west-facing patio sun terrace, which has views across the development, towards Bridgehouse Beck, and will benefit from afternoon and evening sun.
The Larkin’s island kitchen will benefit from a similar layout and spec, with a sink in the island, facing across the living space towards the garden, a premium Rangemaster Professional+ stove behind, and quartz work surfaces
The Larkin is entered on the upper ground floor, via its turfed garden. Besides off-street parking, there’s also a very large integrated garage (with space for storage or a workshop as well as parking), which can be accessed directly from the entrance hallway. One of the home’s four double bedrooms is also on this floor – ideal for visitors, an older family member or teenage child – and it has an en suite shower room. Up on the first floor are the three remaining double bedrooms. The master has en suite shower room, and there’s also a family bathroom with separate bath and shower.
The Larkin under construction (shown in the centre). Pictured are the upper ground floor – with the front and garage doors waiting to be installed – and the first floor above.
The mews that the Larkin is part of is something of a centrepiece for the development – it was designed to pay tribute to an original mill building that was sadly lost to fire some years ago, and has been constructed from our trademark natural stone and slate with beautiful detailing. You can see the stone corbels below the roof line and lintels above the windows and doors in the progress shot above.
A CGI of the Larkin showing the same elevation as the photo above
All the neighbouring homes in the mews are now spoken for, with the first homeowners moving in imminently. Excitingly, the Larkin will be ready to move into in July; it’s also one of the last remaining four bedroom homes at Ebor Mills. What’s more, if you reserve now we’ll include flooring throughout this fabulous townhouse! Click here for more information about the Larkin, and contact us to arrange a viewing on 01535 288000 or [email protected]
An example of flooring installed at a previous show home – this warm walnut tone is always a popular choice
Skipton Properties has been named as one of the 50 fastest growing companies in Yorkshire. The prestigious Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 Awards, which the eminent Northern law firm established more than a decade ago, celebrate growth, innovation, and the commercial achievements of Yorkshire businesses.
The Yorkshire Fastest 50 list is being published as usual after a decision by the organisers to continue to celebrate these successes despite the impact of the pandemic, in an attempt to continue to motivate and inspire those operating in the Yorkshire business community.
Skipton Properties is back on the Fastest 50 list after making our debut in 2017. As with all the companies on the 2021 Fastest 50 List, our inclusion relates to our performance and growth during a period well before the pandemic and Brexit hit. Our ranking is based on data for our financial year ending June 2019.
Sarah Barraclough, Skipton Properties’ Managing Director, said: “We welcomed the news of our inclusion on the 2021 Yorkshire Fastest 50 list in recognition of our previous performance, particularly at such a challenging time for so many companies, including our own. It has been inspiring to see so many local companies of all sizes diversify and adapt in recent months, and to see such a diverse and impressive business cohort represented on the Fastest 50 list. Yorkshire truly is a Northern powerhouse. We build in and around the Dales and are also proud to be recognised as a successful business with a rural, rather than city centre, base.
“Whilst the dual impacts of the pandemic and Brexit have stifled our growth and performance in recent months, our focus on building beautiful, high-quality homes and building for the future of our business and our fantastic team has never wavered. We hope to have similarly positive figures to report on further down the line, and to be eligible for inclusion on future Fastest 50 lists.”
Jonathan Pollard, a Corporate Partner at Ward Hadaway, said, “Congratulations to Skipton Properties and every company in the Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 for 2021 for their tremendous achievement in making this year’s list. This year’s Fastest 50 list, as always, boasts many management teams with an unwavering passion to succeed who have created high growth, profitable businesses. It’s this spirit, and the business success that it creates, that we are delighted to celebrate, particularly this year during such a challenging time for businesses.”
The open plan island kitchen and dining area at Alder Cottage, with double doors leading to the living room, which overlooks the garden
There’s now just one home left at The Sycamores – the very special Alder Cottage. After many months of painstaking work transforming this former farm building into a spacious, modern family home, we’re at last preparing to take down the scaffolding that’s been keeping it under wraps.
We’ll also be able to welcome visitors in the coming weeks, but until you can see for yourself how this home is taking shape, we’re shining a spotlight on Alder Cottage, and all the things that make it so special. And what’s more, it will be complete by the end of June!
Alder Cottage’s southern elevation, with a former archway for carts glazed to create a beautiful feature window
The visualisation above shows the street-facing southern elevation of Alder Cottage – as you can see, we’ve retained the former cart archway, and glazed it to create an incredible feature window. The window is so tall that it will both flood the kitchen and living space with light (see the image below) as well adding providing an interesting feature at floor level in one of the bedrooms upstairs on the first floor. There are four bedrooms in total – two doubles and two singles – all of which feature Velux windows overhead and interesting layouts that follow the building’s quirky original footprint. The huge master bedroom benefits from a spacious dressing area as well as an en suite shower room, housed within thick stone walls. There’s also a house bathroom and storage on the first floor.
The open plan living space with island kitchen at Alder Cottage
Back on the ground floor, the huge open plan living space includes an island kitchen that will be finished with the units and quartz work surfaces of your choice. The kitchen is made even more desirable by the upgraded stove we’ll be installing – a CornuFé 1908 by high-end French manufacturer, La Cornue. These beautiful stoves have been described as ‘jewellery for the kitchen’, and this one is no exception, coming in the brand’s signature Provence Blue shade shown below, with complimentary chrome trims. The 1908 delivers on cooking performance too, with La Cornue‘s trademark vaulted oven, inspired by traditional hearths and designed to conduct heat efficiently and create the ideal balance of heat and humidity, for perfectly-cooked dishes every time. There’s also an electric grill, five powerful gas burners and a useful storage drawer beneath the oven.
The CornuFé 1908 is the stove shown in the images on the left and right. The model installed in Alder Cottage is in the Provence Blue shade shown in the centre
Leading off the kitchen and dining area are a cosy TV room/snug as well as a sitting room, as depicted in the visualisation below. This light-filled room will have a high ceiling crossed by exposed wooden beams, and double doors leading to the garden.
The sitting room at Alder Cottage, with exposed wooden beams overhead and doors leading to the garden
Alder Cottage‘s garden will also be something special. Enclosed within stone walls built by hand by our expert craftsmen will be an idyllic, wonderfully low maintenance courtyard garden, with tiers of decorative paving and beds stocked with edible and scented plants, including herb and fruit bushes. The entrance to the home is accessed via the garden, with off-street parking and a garage just a few steps away.
Alder Cottage’s bespoke courtyard garden
Even better – Alder Cottage is on course to be completed by the end of June, and therefore will be eligible for the Government’s Stamp Duty holiday if it’s reserved imminently! Don’t miss your chance to make your home in this unique cottage in a beautiful rural setting whilst saving £15k in Stamp Duty – contact us to find out more and book an appointment on 01756 636633 or [email protected]. Find more details on Alder Cottagehere.
We’re hiring! We’re looking for a Finance Administrator to join our family team, reporting to our Finance Manager and taking responsibility for ordering, invoice processing, payroll and purchase ledger.
The ideal applicant will have experience in an accounts payable/purchase ledger role, preferably in construction; and have good knowledge of book-keeping procedures and Microsoft Excel. Take a look at the Job Specification for full details and information on how to apply.
The Government’s Stamp Duty holiday has been extended until 30th June! We have beautiful homes and apartments across all four of our current developments that will be ready in time.
Move into your dream home this summer and benefit from either NO Stamp Duty to pay, or savings of up to £15k for sales of first homes completed by 30th June.* Read on to discover which of our homes could be taking you on a Stamp Duty holiday, from beautiful apartments and townhouses in Haworth to luxury country homes in Coniston Cold and exceptional conversions in Skipton.
A visualisation of a Larkin townhouse at Ebor Mill, with turfed garden, off-street parking and integrated garage
At Ebor Mills in Haworth, our Larkin and Eavestone townhouses will be ready to move into by the end of June and, with prices starting at £270,000, will benefit from NO Stamp Duty to pay on sales completed by 30th June. These spacious homes are spread across three storeys, and have three (the Eavestone) or four bedrooms (the Larkin). The visualisation above shows the upper ground floor at the Larkin, with the main entrance, garage with space for parking as well as storage or a small workshop area, and double bedroom with en suite shower room. The main living space is found on the lower ground floor, with island kitchen and open plan dining and seating area, as well as a laundry/WC and double doors opening onto more outside space. On the first floor are three further bedrooms and two bathrooms, one en suite. The Eavestone has a similar layout, with three bedrooms and a smaller footprint.
The open plan living space with island kitchen at Alder Cottage
Over at The Sycamores in Coniston Cold is Alder Cottage, a completely unique home that’s been thoughtfully converted from existing agricultural buildings. It’s packed with character as a result – the huge window you can see on the left in the image above was formerly an archway for carts – and there are exposed beams and original thick stone walls. This spacious home has a luxury spec, four bedrooms, including a master suite with dressing area and shower room, a huge open plan kitchen/living space (shown above) with luxury stove and separate living and TV rooms, and a tiered, landscaped garden stocked with edible and scented plants. Take a closer look here. It’s priced at £595,000 and if you reserve now and complete by 30th June you’ll pay just £4,750 in Stamp Duty, instead of £19,750 – a saving of £15,000!
Contact us to find out more about these homes and book an appointment on [email protected] or 01756 636633 – our Sales Office at The Sycamores is open Thursday – Monday each week.
The three bedroom Hill Townhouses at St. Stephen’s Place – plots 8 and 9 (left and centre) are still available
We’re making excellent progress at St. Stephen’s Place in Skipton. Almost half of our homes have already been reserved, but all our remaining homes will be ready by the end of June and, with prices ranging from £265,000 for a converted, two bedroom, duplex apartment (below) to £455,000 for a brand new, three bedroom Hill Townhouse (above), all will benefit from NO Stamp Duty to pay for sales completed by 30th June.
The Apartments, Style 1, at St. Stephen’s Place
After many months of painstaking work at this landmark site in our hometown, viewings are now available at St. Stephen’s Place – contact us to book on [email protected] or 01756 630536. The Sales Office is open Thursday – Monday each week.
The open plan living space in the View Apartment at The Bridge, with upgraded kitchen
Just two apartments are still available at The Bridge and, with prices starting at £190,000, both will benefit from NO Stamp Duty to pay for sales completed by 30th June. Both homes are two beds – some of our largest apartments – with outside space in the form of either a balcony or terrace. One is our View Apartment, shown above, which is finished and includes an upgraded kitchen with quartz work surfaces and AEG appliances. Both are on the ground floor, for easy accessibility, and include flooring, carpeting and tiling throughout. These homes are the perfect blend of modern design and heritage elements, thanks to their location in the historic Bridgehouse Mill building.
Now that almost all of our luxury apartments in Haworth have been snapped up, we’re taking a closer look at the last two apartments at The Bridge.
Both apartments are expansive, two bedroom homes, and follow the same style and layout. The large open plan living space has floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides, flooding the room with light. Feature windows appear throughout this apartment style in fact, providing natural light in every room.
The kitchen is in a wide galley style, with extra long counters for food prep and displaying favourite appliances. In these last two apartments at The Bridge, the kitchens have been upgraded, with beautiful quartz work surfaces and upgraded door fronts to complement the oak-effect interiors. One of the two available apartments is our View Apartment (shown in these images), which also includes upgraded, integrated AEG appliances (the other apartment has Zanussi appliances).
As well as access to a communal garden for residents, both apartments benefit from desirable private outdoor space, accessed from the main living area. The View Apartment is on the ground floor and has a terrace, while the second apartment is on the first floor, and has a balcony with views towards Bridgehouse Beck and the Keighley and Worth Valley Steam Railway. The outside space faces west, so will enjoy afternoon and evening sun.
Both bedrooms are good-sized doubles, with the larger bedroom benefitting from dual aspect windows. The bathroom has a big shower, Hansgrohe fixtures and a contemporary chrome towel radiator. The View Apartment has stylish tiling already in place in the kitchen and bathroom. Wood effect flooring and carpeting is also included for both apartments, and two cupboards, located off the airy entrance hallway and kitchen, provide valuable storage space. Take a look at the floorplan here.
The View Apartment is already complete, and work is well underway on the first floor apartment, so talk to us today about snapping up one of the last two apartments at The Bridge, which are priced from £190,000. Contact our Sales Advisor on 01535 288009 or [email protected].
Let’s take a closer look at the first homes to be released at Ebor Mills. This terrace of five handsome townhouses has been designed to pay tribute to the 19th century multi-storey spinning mill that once stood in its place.
Our video features CGI visualisations of the finished homes and photography of previously completed show homes, to give you a sense of what we’re creating at Ebor Mills. These homes are now available to reserve off-plan – to find out more and book an appointment, please get in touch via [email protected] or 01535 288000.
The Bluebell and the Eavestone are our two smaller homes, with an almost identical layout. The Bluebell is reserved, but the Eavestone is still available. It’s a favourite house style we’ve constructed at previous developments, making little tweaks here to make sure it looks right at home in this location. The home is entered via the upper ground floor (see image below), with an entrance hallway leading to a WC, utility room and storage space. There’s also access to the integrated single garage. Stairs lead down to the heart of the home: the open plan living space that occupies the entire lower ground floor. There’s a desirable island kitchen and plenty of space for seating and dining, as well as a corner nook that could accommodate a desk for home working or a comfy chair for reading. Double doors open onto the rear gardens. The bedrooms are up on the third floor, with a single and double that share a family bathroom with bath, and master bedroom with its own en suite shower room. The Eavestone is priced at £270,000 – click here and scroll down to view the floorplan.
A previous show home with a similar layout to the Larkin and Burnett
The Larkin and Burnett are built along similar lines, albeit with a larger footprint. For these homes, the lower ground floors benefit from very large integrated garages, with space for a workshop or storage as well as parking. The large entrance hallway also has access to a self-contained, accessible bedroom with en suite shower room – perfect for visitors or family members who would appreciate the privacy. Downstairs, the fabulous open plan living area affords plenty of space for seating and dining and an integrated corner kitchen, plus a separate utility and WC, and two sets of double doors leading to the landscaped rear gardens. On the top floor are three further double bedrooms, including the master with en suite shower room, plus a family bathroom with bath. Plot 36, the Burnett, also benefits from an additional second floor, which is home to a wonderfully secluded home office space with Juliet balcony and storage space. The Larkin starts at £384,500 – click here and scroll down to view floorplans – while the Burnett is priced at £399,500. You can view floorplans for the Burnetthere.
View the first homes at Ebor Millshere – you can also sign up to receive updates when new homes are released. Want to find out more, discuss your requirements or book an off-plan appointment? We’d love to hear from you – contact us on [email protected] or 01535 288000.
Part Two of our look back at the evolution of Ebor Mills takes us into the 20th century, with modernisation and multiple owners along the way.
Read Part One of the evolution of Ebor Mills here.
While we don’t have a record of Ebor Mills for the early part of the 20th century, we were able to build a clear picture of the business in the modern era. This is thanks to Angus ‘Ben’ Rhodes, who managed Ebor from 1968-1988 and was kind enough to share his recollections with us.
The Merrall & Sons Company was eventually liquidated in 1966, after a fire destroyed Lees Mill. The last of the Merrall line, Jack Merrall, lived at the mill owner’s house, but it was said that he retired to the Isle of Man on the insurance proceeds of the fire! The Jerome Group then purchased Ebor Mills. When Ben took charge of Ebor in 1968 all the worsted spinning took place in the multi-storey mill (the original, roadside spinning mill had been converted to office space by this time) and the original Victorian machinery was still in use, operated by a workforce of 60-70 people. The boiler house was also still in use, heating the mill buildings, and Ben lived in one of the mill workers’ cottages for a short time.
A view of the warehouse, with the chimney in the background
Although worsted is traditionally used for suiting, the yarn produced at Ebor at this time was actually sold to knitwear producers, including household names such as Marks & Spencer, British heritage brands like Wolsey and Pantherella and fellow sockmakers H J Hall.
In 1969 the decision was made to re-equip the mill with modern machinery, a process which took some seven years but dramatically increased production; so much so that by the 1980s Jerome had outgrown Ebor Mills. In 1988 they moved from Ebor to a single-storey spinning mill in Keighley, to further increase the size and efficiency of their operation. Ben oversaw the move (and stayed with Jerome until he retired in 1994) and Ebor was sold to Airedale Springs.
Airedale Springs, a local, family-run producer of specialist springs founded in 1946, occupied Ebor Mills from 1988 until 2010, when a fire sadly destroyed the multi-storey spinning mill. In a neat piece of circularity, Airedale Springs built a replacement facility next to Bridgehouse Mill, which they themselves had occupied in the 1970s, and which has now also been redeveloped into luxury apartments by Skipton Properties.
Read Part One of the evolution of Ebor Mills here, which covers the early part of its history. In the meantime, find out more about the new community we’re creating in the heart of Haworth – discover our homes here.
With thanks to Ben Rhodes for sharing his recollections of Ebor Mills with us.
Ebor Mills is shown in the foreground of this image from the early part of the 20th century. The large multi-storey spinning mill in the centre was sadly later destroyed by fire and demolished, as was Lees Mills, which is the large mill complex in the background. Ebor Mills’ chimney, warehouse, spinning mill and workers’ cottages (L-R) can be clearly seen.
Ebor Mills was first established more than two centuries ago. Now, as it undergoes a complete reinvention and we prepare to welcome a new community of residents, we’re looking back at the evolution of Ebor Mills.
The original Ebor Mill was built in 1819 by Hiram Craven, a contractor and stone mason based in Keighley. It had seven bays and three storeys and was powered by water from Bridgehouse Beck – a huge internal water wheel once occupied the eastern end of the building, with the mill race in front. The original mill building still stands as the spinning mill (1) – the roadside building just off Ebor Lane – and, like the rest of the remaining mill structures, it is Grade II listed.
At first the spinning mill was rented out, but by 1834 the firm Cravens & Sugden had been set up by Hiram Craven in partnership with his two sons, and the Cravens were operating the mill themselves. Between 1847 and 1848 the spinning mill was extended and several cottages (2) were built for mill workers.
In 1851 Cravens & Sugden was dissolved and the Ebor Mill complex was sold to the Merrall brothers. Hartley Merrall first established a weaving business in the area in the early 19th century, and his four sons carried on the family business with great success. Documents suggest the Merralls had already been renting Ebor prior to buying it, and in 1844 they had built Lees Mill (3), which was conveniently located immediately to the east of Ebor. The two mill complexes were soon sharing facilities and running in tandem.
A view of the spinning mill, boiler house and edge of the warehouse
With the business-savvy Merralls at the helm, Ebor entered a period of rapid expansion and upgrades. An additional steam-powered mill and engine house was built, likely in the 1860s, but this was soon replaced by the warehouse (4) and weaving sheds (5). In 1885 neighbouring Lees Mill was devastated by fire, but by 1892 it had been completely rebuilt, and the Merralls also took the opportunity to improve Ebor during this period. The original spinning mill was extended between 1886-7 and the economiser (6), boiler house (7) and chimney (8) were also constructed, as was a new, much larger, multi-storey spinning mill (9).
This large complex of buildings would have been a hive of industry, and the worsted, a fine quality wool yarn, produced there was in high demand. It was said that Merralls workers formed one of the most prosperous communities in Yorkshire, and by 1910 the company was said to have 15,000 spindles and 1,400 looms, making it one of the county’s largest worsted spinning operations (10).
Watch this space for Part Two of the evolution of Ebor Mills‘, which will take us up to the present day. In the meantime, find out more about the new community we’re creating in the heart of Haworth – discover our homes here.
An Ordnance Survey map from 1894, showing Ebor and Lees Mills (Crown Copyright and Landmark Information Group 2019)
(1) We’re creating several unique homes within the former spinning mill. (2) Five of the mill workers’ cottages survive and we are renovating three of them. (3) Lees Mill was demolished after a fire in the 1960s. (4) We’re creating several apartments and townhouses within the former warehouse. (5) We’ve paid homage to the saw tooth, ‘North Light’, roofs of the weaving sheds in the design of some of our new build homes, which will stand where they once did. (6) We’re creating a standalone home within the former economiser. (7) We’ll retain and restore part of the old boiler house as a historical asset. (8) The original chimney is still very much a feature of Ebor Mills’ roofline. (9) The multi-storey spinning mill built in the late 1880s was sadly destroyed by fire in 2010. (10) Incidentally, the Merralls also owned Lowertown Shed (also known as Lower Holme Mill) at Oxenhope, which was redeveloped by Skipton Properties 15 years ago.
