A HOTEL chain has pulled out of transforming a Grade II listed country house near Amport into a hotel. 

Amport House was earmarked by hotel chain Another Place, which currently has hotels in Cornwall and the Lake District, to open a 48-bedroom boutique hotel.

However, the former RAF building, which has been vacant since 2020, is now up for sale for £5m with estate agents Christie & Co.

Another Place gained planning permission in October last year.

It has told the Advertiser: "During the delayed planning process over the last 30 months, we have doubled down on what the Another Place brand stands for, and have decided to focus on other opportunities. These include the addition of The Machrie to the Another Place collection, and the acquisition of the Brackenrigg Inn as an extension to our existing Another Place, The Lake offering.”

The application included a swim club, kids club, including an outdoor play area, along with a bar and restaurant, and woodland cabins.

The Grade II listed mansion has more than 42,000 square feet of internal space including offices, kitchens, formal rooms, cafes and stores.

Also on the site is an extensive garage, former stables, stores for garden machinery and temporary storage facilities, including a cellar.

The estate surrounding the house comprises of 20 acres of extensive gardens and grounds including a mix of lawns, pasture and open parkland which surround the formal gardens.

The gardens contain ornate water features, yew hedging, topiary and a knot garden incorporating the coat of arms of the Marquis of Winchester.

The current house was built in 1857 in an Elizabethan style by John Paulet, replacing two houses which had stood on the site before.

Accommodation at the property is spread across three floors connected via ornate staircases around a central lobby.

Amport House was requisitioned in the Second World War by the Royal Air Force, and in 1957 the RAF bought the house and grounds. In the 1990s the house became the Armed Forces Chaplaincy Centre.