Estate Agents In Ashley,
North Northamptonshire

he result is a striking cluster of Gothic Revival buildings around the Grade I listed Church of St Mary the Virgin, whose chancel — decorated with marble, alabaster, semi-precious stones, and gold leaf by Clayton and Bell — is described by Historic England as an outstanding example of Victorian Gothic style at its height. Scott also built the village school (1858) and schoolmaster’s house (1865), and several homes along Main Street date from this period.

The village today is quiet and largely agricultural. Farmland and gentle, rolling hills surround it on all sides. The street plan follows a figure-of-eight pattern, with housing arranged in a linear fashion and the church on the highest ground.

A designated conservation area protects the heart of the village, with 31 listed buildings and monuments within its boundaries. Ashley is not a place with shops or busy high streets — for everyday needs, people head to Market Harborough or Corby. But it is the kind of place where people know one another by name, and where the landscape and the built form have remained largely unchanged for over a century.

Sought-after property in Ashley: The most sought-after properties tend to be along Main Street, Green Lane, and Hall Lane, where stone-fronted period homes sit on generous plots with views across open countryside. Westhorpe, at the southern end of the village, also has a number of well-regarded homes. Given Ashley’s small size (around 100 properties in total), homes here come to market infrequently, which tends to keep prices above the wider local average.

Development in Ashley: The conservation area designation means large-scale new-build development is unlikely. However, one significant project in recent years has been the acquisition and planned renovation of The George, the village’s sole remaining pub and a 17th-century Grade II listed ironstone building. Ashley Parish Council purchased the pub in April 2025, using a £250,000 Community Ownership Fund grant and a Public Works Loan Board loan, and listed building consent was sought later that year for a full internal renovation to bring it back into use as a working pub.

• Train – The nearest station is Market Harborough, around four miles away, on the Midland Main Line operated by East Midlands Railway. Direct services run to London St Pancras in approximately 55 minutes, Leicester in about 15 minutes, and Nottingham in around 50 minutes. Corby station, roughly six miles to the east, also provides services to London St Pancras and Kettering.
• Cycling & walking – The quiet lanes and bridleways surrounding Ashley are well suited to both cycling and walking. The Welland Valley provides scenic routes linking nearby villages such as Medbourne, Weston by Welland, and Cottingham. The Macmillan Way long-distance footpath also passes through the surrounding area.
• Nearest airport – East Midlands Airport is roughly 35 miles to the north-west, offering flights to a range of European and domestic destinations. Birmingham Airport is approximately 50 miles to the west.

• Foxton Locks – Around seven miles to the west, this is Britain’s longest staircase flight of canal locks, rising 23 metres through ten locks. A popular spot for walking, picnicking, and watching narrowboats negotiate the flight.
• Medbourne Village – This neighbouring village in the Welland Valley, about two miles to the north, is known for its medieval packhorse bridge, ironstone cottages, and the annual Hallaton Bottle Kicking event held each Easter Monday — one of the oldest folk customs in England.
• Market Harborough Old Grammar School – Four miles to the south-west, this distinctive timber-framed building dating from 1614 stands raised on stilts in the town centre and is one of the most photographed buildings in Leicestershire.
• The Welland Valley – The valley stretching either side of Ashley offers some of the best walking and riding country in the East Midlands. Footpaths and bridleways link Ashley to Weston by Welland, Sutton Bassett, Stoke Albany, and beyond, through a landscape of hedgerows, pastures, and ironstone villages.
• Corby Cube & Rooftop Garden – Five miles to the east in Corby’s regenerated town centre, this modern civic building houses a theatre, library, and rooftop garden with panoramic views across the surrounding area.

Corby, five miles to the east, has undergone significant transformation since the closure of its steelworks in 1979 and is now one of the fastest-growing towns in England. Tata Steel still operates a tube-manufacturing works in the town and has recently invested £30 million in upgrading its facilities. The former West Works site has been sold for redevelopment into a large-scale logistics park, and major employers in the wider Corby area now span logistics, distribution, food manufacturing, and advanced engineering — with companies such as NewCold, RS Components, and Weetabix all having a presence in the area.

Looking ahead, Corby’s ongoing regeneration — including nearly £20 million in Town Fund investment, improvements to the station and town centre, and thousands of planned new homes — is expected to bring further employment growth. For those based in Ashley, the combination of good road links to the A14 corridor and proximity to both Corby and Market Harborough provides a solid range of employment options, while the village itself offers a quiet countryside setting to return to at the end of the working day.