Lea Hurst: the former home of Florence Nightingale

There’s something incredibly evocative as you meander down to Lea Hurst following the same approach that would have been used by Florence Nightingale back in the 1800s.

Indeed, the picturesque driveway is one of many careful restorations undertaken on the estate since Peter Kay and his family bought the famous property 14 years ago.

‘I think this is such an important place,’ Peter tells me as we stand at the entrance to Lea Hurst, Florence’s old bedroom directly above us on what is a beautiful Derbyshire day.

Lea Hurst from the lawn Photo: Victoria Wilcox ‘Firstly, it’s right on the edge of the village, whereas Emberly in Hampshire, where the family later moved, was quite distant and isolated.

‘It was here at Lea Hurst that Florence’s eyes were opened to the living conditions of people from the village who were working in the mines and the factories and living in squalid conditions; that effectively inspired her calling.’

Lea Hurst and its grounds are inspiring and impressive in their own right. A peaceful idyl packed with charm and character.

There are many nods to Florence and the Nightingale family throughout the estate Photo: Victoria Wilcox Yet evidence is all around you of the famous family who once called it home, from the blue plaque on the entrance to fascinating original features dotted throughout.

‘The ‘N’ in ‘N 1825’ is for Nightingale’, explains Peter, pointing to a stone carving above the doorway. ‘That’s the date the Nightingales moved in. The house was a Jacobean farmhouse originally, part of Peter Nightingale’s estate, a local lead merchant who became a wealthy fellow.

‘He bankrolled Richard Arkwright to set up Cromford Mill and then he had the Nightingale branch of the canal which turned the wheel of the mill he set up, which is now John Smedley.

The property has been beautifully and sympathetically renovated over the years Photo: Victoria Wilcox ‘There was a lease offered to the Smedley family and they subsequently bought it in 1891 and Florence signed the deed, which they still have in the archive at John Smedley.’

Had things been different, explains Peter, it may have been the nearby Grade II-listed Lea Hall which could have been Florence’s childhood home.

‘When Peter died in 1803, his will required the estate be pass to the nearest male relative, William Shore, who had to wait until he was 21 to inherit the Nightingale estate,’ says Peter.

The main living room Photo: Victoria Wilcox ‘He changed his name to William Nightingale in 1815 and, when he married Frances Smith they went on an extended honeymoon to Italy and had two daughters born there, the second being Florence.

‘Peter had lived in nearby Lea Hall but when they got back from Italy, William thought Lea Hurst would be the perfect family home and he extended and modernised the old Jacobean farmhouse.’

Fast forward two centuries and Lea Hurst is majestic. Four floors comprise eight beautiful bedrooms, five further ancillary rooms, eight reception rooms, eight bathrooms and grounds of about 11.6 acres set in stunning countryside – looking down on the Derwent Valley.

The former library Photo: Victoria Wilcox Florence Nightingale once said ‘it breaks my heart to leave Lea Hurst’ so that begs the question – why did the family move on?

‘It was actually described as a “small 15-bedroom house” by Florence,’ laughs Peter in response.

‘Indeed, it was ultimately too small for their needs as an upwardly mobile, upper middle-class family so they ended up buying Emberly Park in Hampshire as their principal residence and this became their summer home.’

The kitchen Photo: Victoria Wilcox As Peter identifies interesting parts of the property – such as the 1416 chapel window in the oldest part of the house which is believed to have come from what was Wakebridge Manor just up the road – it’s clear this has not just been a family home for Peter, it’s become a big part of his life too.

‘We bought the house in 2011. It had been a nursing home from 1946 until 2004 and there was a lot of work to do,’ he reveals.

‘Like I suspect many people, I knew about the legend of the Lady with the Lamp but that’s all I knew. I was obviously aware she was an important figure in our history.

The room which was once Florence’s bedroom Photo: Victoria Wilcox ‘It was actually quite random how I came across the house. I was living in Singapore at the time and my parents live in Ashover, so I was visiting them. While on the visit I saw that Florence Nightingale’s former home was for sale and one thing led to another.

‘It’s really been a passion project to do the house up and it’s a very hard decision to sell but we are moving to the Philippines as that’s where my wife is from and it’s important for us that our children experience that culture.’

As Peter shows me round, it’s difficult to pinpoint what’s most impressive – the house itself, the painstaking love and care which has clearly been shown in bringing it back to its former glory, or the artifacts you’re met with at every turn.

A painting showing the exact spot Florence would sit and look out Photo: Victoria Wilcox One striking observation is how unspoiled the surrounding landscape is. As I am shown to what was once Florence’s personal quarters and head out onto one of many pretty balconies, it’s clear the views Florence would have once looked out on from this very spot are largely unaltered.

The famous novelist Elizabeth Gaskell stayed here in 1854 and penned a charming description of the place which remains pretty accurate to this very day.

‘High as Lea Hurst is, one seems on a pinnacle, with the clouds careering round one. Down below is a garden with stone terraces and flights of steps – the planes of these terraces being perfectly gorgeous with masses of hollyhocks, dahlias, nasturtiums, geraniums etc. Then a sloping meadow losing itself in a steep wooded descent (such tints over the wood!) to the river Derwent, the rocks on the other side of which form the first distance, and are of a red colour streaked with misty purple. Beyond this, interlacing hills, forming three ranges of distance; the first, deep brown with decaying heather; the next, in some purple shadow, and the last catching some pale, watery sunlight.’

Lea Hurst has been the perfect family home Photo: Victoria Wilcox Another observation is just how sympathetic the design of the house is. Of course, it has all the mod cons and everything and more you’d find in a family home but, nevertheless, you feel you could be stepping back in time to Florence’s day.

‘We started from scratch, stripped everything out and restored the house back to how it once was,’ Peter tells me as we wander round the living room, a chess board set up by the window offering wonderful views towards the drive.

‘All the original fireplaces and shutters have survived, they just needed restoring. We bought period furniture too to complement the house.’

The restored cellar Photo: Victoria Wilcox Room after room offers surprises. The private living quarters of Florence – currently Peter’s office – which retains original furniture on loan from the Florence Nightingale Museum; her old bedroom with views down into the Derwent Valley; the restored cellar underground… the list goes on.

Perhaps my favourite room is the former library – spacious, flooded with natural light and, yes, affording breath-taking views. Florence must have spent hours and hours here, honing her natural intellect.

‘We know her as the founder of modern nursing but she had an all-round fierce intellect,’ says Peter as we look around the library.

The property boasts eight beautiful bedrooms Photo: Victoria Wilcox‘She was an amazing statistician, she pioneered the use of infographics, she was the first female member of the Royal Statistical Society, she designed hospitals, gave advice on military field hospitals, lobbied Government, the list goes on, all while having to battle against male hierarchy.’

As Peter describes the wonderful paintings and artefacts that adorn the walls of this fascinating property – including original handwritten letters from Florence, one of which sees her writing to the head of the British Army, general sir William Codrington, on July 16 1856, after the Crimean War – I am particularly struck by a statuette of Florence in the lobby.

‘At Waterloo Place in London they have the Crimean War Memorial with Sidney Herbert, secretary of state for war, on one plinth and Florence on the other,’ Peter informs me.

One of eight bathrooms Photo: Victoria Wilcox ‘Arthur Walker, the sculptor, made three miniature bronzes and this one of the three. I know one of the other two is at 10 Downing Street as part of the Government’s art collection and is displayed in the White Drawing Room.’

Lea Hurst is a property which has it all – the character, the space, the features and, of course, the social history.

It’s clear that it has provided Peter and his family with a loving home for the past 14 years and it’s also clear why Florence Nightingale was so enamoured with the place.

Lea Hurst, which comprises 14,150sq ft of accommodation, is currently on the market for £3m with Prime Property and Savills.

For more information, contact Tim Phillips, Prime Property, on 07939 936 243 or Ian Marriott, Savills, on 0115 934 8000.

To view the property, visit bit.ly/LeaHurstDerbyshire.

A miniature bronze of Florence Nightingale – one of only three in existence Photo: Victoria Wilcox Lea Hurst played a hugely significant role in Florence’s life Photo: Victoria Wilcox The property includes four floors Photo: Victoria Wilcox The approach to Lea Hurst Photo: Victoria Wilcox Stunning Lea Hurst Photo: Victoria Wilcox