Sliding doors in Nutley, on the edge of Ashdown Forest
Nutley is about five miles north-west of Uckfield on the A22 London to Eastbourne road, on the southern edge of Ashdown Forest. It is part of Maresfield civil parish.
A forest village
The forest was a royal deer park for centuries, and the Romans smelted iron nearby at Duddleswell and Maresfield. Nutley's church of St James the Less and the village school were both built in the mid-19th century on land given by the Earl and Countess De La Warr. Nutley Windmill, moved here from Goudhurst around 1817, is a rare open trestle post mill and worked until 1908. Off the A22 the land is more rolling, with side roads and lanes running out towards the forest.
Higher, more exposed ground
Ashdown Forest occupies the highest sandstone ridge of the High Weald, and Nutley's houses feel that. Wind on an open garden is a real consideration when choosing garden doors. An outward-opening French door will be caught by gusts unless it has firm stays; a slider is not affected at all. Glass spec matters too: on a north or west facing back wall, triple glazing or a better double-glazed unit makes a difference you notice in winter.
Planning
Nutley does not appear on Wealden's list of conservation areas. It sits within the High Weald National Landscape, which bears more on new building and extensions than on replacing doors and windows. Listed buildings still need consent.
What usually suits
Many Nutley houses are detached and set in their own plots, and owners often do the whole house at once: a slider at the back, a solid front door and matching aluminium windows.
Illustrative example of a typical job
Slider, aluminium front door and six windows, detached house in Nutley
The house: A detached house near the southern edge of Ashdown Forest in Nutley, being refitted in one go before the owners move in.
The spec: A two-pane aluminium slider at the back, an aluminium entrance door at the front, and six slimline aluminium casements throughout, all in one colour.
Typically £17,050 to £31,750, supplied and fitted, including VAT.
One survey, one order and one fitting team for the whole house. The windows are priced as a whole-house set, which brings the per-window figure down.
