The draw of the English countryside remains unchanged, from the gentle scenery of the South Downs and the quintessential honey-coloured stone of the Cotswolds to the rugged landscape and beauty of the Lake District, not to mention the chocolate-box villages and country pubs within them.

What has changed, however, is the expectation of weekenders. For many, the old-style fussy country house hotel has been replaced by the altogether more stylish boutique-hotel-meets-country-club, with five-star interiors and top-class finishes. So it’s perhaps not surprising that buyers are now looking for that same luxurious and contemporary feel in a country house.

Thanks to the hike in stamp duty costs, homeowners who would have bought a large country house a decade ago are now opting for something slightly more modest and spending the money saved in tax on home comforts similar to those found in the likes of Soho Farmhouse and The Pig hotels.

Certainly, we have noticed that luxuries such as underfloor heating, en suite bathrooms for every bedroom and a dressing room, however small, in the master bedroom are becoming country must-haves.

Here is selection of properties renovated to the highest standard, offering utterly uncompromising interiors and gardens in which to retreat from the working week.

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