New faces and a facelift for estate agent

A long-serving estate agent on the Wiltshire / Gloucestershire border has restated its commitment to the area by investing in new staff and a refurbishment of the premises.

Property negotiators Jenny Bowyer and Sarah Whittingham join residential lettings negotiator Nancy Haughton and Lorraine Kyte at Moore Allen & Innocent in Lechlade, which handles around 60 house sales and more than 100 lettings every year.

The office is managed by Roy Bowyer, a partner in Moore Allen & Innocent, whose head office is in Cirencester.

The Burford Street office markets properties in the East Cotswolds, North Wiltshire and West Oxfordshire, and has been the leading agent in all recent new developments in the area.

And the name Moore Allen & Innocent has been synonymous with Lechlade for well over 100 years. The cattle market and estate agent operated by Frank Innocent amalgamated with Moore Allen in 1895 – and Mr Innocent continued to operate in the town under the new name until well into the 20th century.

Although the late Georgian period building has undergone a substantial refurbishment – including new interior and exterior signage – the firm has been careful to retain original features, including a floor with a fascinating history.

The parquet floor is made of pieces of oak destined to have been turned into rifle butts at a munitions factory.

When the First World War ended in 1918 the pieces of wood were no longer required, so Mr Innocent reclaimed them as flooring for his office, which had been damaged in the Great Fire of Lechlade in 1915 – a blaze that had seen neighbouring properties go up in flames.

So it was apt that when the town’s popular Memorial Hall and Pavilion was struck by arsonists in 2016, staff from Moore Allen & Innocent threw their efforts into fundraising towards the restoration of the building, which reopened a year later.

The firm is also a keen supporter of Lechlade & District Lions Club minibus – which provides transport to community groups in and around the town – and to St Lawrence primary school and Lechlade Gardening Club.

“This office is a pulse within Moore Allen & Innocent’s heartbeat in Lechlade,” said Roy Bowyer.

“We’re proud to have been associated with the town for over 120 years, and we look forward to providing a professional, knowledgeable and friendly service for many years to come.”