Prestige property: A family home created from a doctor’s consulting rooms is perfect place for entertaining

Looking around Pamela and Stephen Fowler’s house, Glencairn, in Bathgate, it is difficult to imagine the scale of the work that has gone into creating this immaculate home.

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate

Built around the turn of the 20th Century, the handsome detached villa was previously the home and consulting rooms of a doctor, but in the 11 years since the Fowlers bought the property, it has undergone a radical transformation.

Pamela explains what attracted the couple to the project. “We are both from Bathgate and were looking for a big house which could accommodate gatherings of our friends, and friends of our children.

“They were teenagers at the time, and we have family in the area, so it was important to us to be able to fit everyone in. The upgrading project, which took about two years, was all to make it into a really sociable house.”

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate

From the street view, the house has kept its traditional proportions. Inside, the upstairs four bedrooms and a small bathroom have become three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The master has a walk-through dressing room to enter a spacious ensuite.

Downstairs the original bay-windowed sitting room and dining room, resplendent with all their retained period features, flank the front door, with a fourth bedroom to the rear, and the addition of a downstairs shower room and utility room, replacing the space where the original small kitchen was.

At the back of the house – an area that previously encompassed a waiting room, coal bunker and pantry – an L-shaped extension has been built, carefully matching the stone of the original house.

Inside is a vast kitchen with a family room off. A sheltered courtyard has been created between the house and part of the extension, with doors from the family room leading to it on one side and to the garden on the other, allowing for an opening up of the main living space.

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate

The upgrading project was carried out when the Fowlers first moved in, with both Stephen and Pamela holding down full-time jobs. She is a client manager for an insurance firm, while Stephen is a manufacturing director.

Pamela recalls: “The work was extensive and very messy. The house needed to be rewired, replumbed, walls were taken down, we put new heating in and new windows – all while living in it. The dust from the removal of the crumbling plaster was horrendous.”

But, after two years of work, the interior was complete – the couple then started on the garden.

Pamela says: “The front garden is enormous with mature trees and a large grass area, but we have left that as it was, apart from adding a few architectural trees for interest and privacy.”

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate

As well as the courtyard, the Fowlers have added a covered barbecue and dining area in the south-facing part of the garden. It has feature lighting and is used by the family all year round. A very pretty summer house was added seven years ago, and the walled back garden has been landscaped.

The eye-catching decor in the house is Pamela’s passion. “I enjoy upcycling, so there are lots of examples of traditional furniture that I’ve added a twist to. I don’t like to spend a lot of money on pieces, but it does satisfy my creative side. The console table, for example, is made out of balusters from an architectural salvage yard.”

In the last two years, having features such as a perfect garden and the outside covered space has really proved useful.

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate

And the house has proved to be an ideal spot to host parties.

It is now time to downsize, but Pamela says: “We will miss the gatherings we’ve had here, but part of me thinks it is time to be invited to someone else’s house now.”

Glencairn, Marjoribanks Street, Bathgate is priced at offers over £695,000.

For more information, contact Turpie & Co. on 01506 668448. Closing date: 21 February at noon.

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