A HOLIDAY business based in Bellingham is for sale with a half-million pound price tag.

The self-catering chalets based on the former Brownrigg Boarding School, on the outskirts of the village, is being offered for sale by estate agents Christie and Co.

The site has been developed using the surviving wooden buildings from the pioneering former boarding school, which closed in 1985.

The package includes a 4/5 bedroom family home with orchard and vegetable garden, as well as a bunk house with staff flat, a function hall, stables with a bike lock-up and storage shed, and the unused former school hall with dining room and kitchen.

In total, there are six cedar clad buildings, three garages and three workshops on offer.

The deal includes ten acres of fields and woodland, and plenty of space for private parking and can accommodate groups of up to 24 people.

The package does not include the adjacent award-winning Bellingham Camping and Caravan site, which was established on the former school playing field.

Brownrigg School was built in 1938 as one of a series of identical settlements by the National Camps Corporation, with the object of bringing children out of urban areas for a couple of weeks fresh air in the country.

The outbreak of the Second World War meant the school’s first role was to house evacuees from Newcastle, all girls.

When hostilities ceased, in 1945, the Northumberland Education Committee leased the site to establish one of the country’s first co-educational boarding schools, drawing children from all over the county.

The school put a high emphasis on outdoor activities,with a lot of sport, cross-country running and compulsory hikes on Sunday afternoons, sometimes stretching to 15 miles ,following the equally compulsory church service.

The school organised an annual trip to Edinburgh as well as annual trips to Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Holland. There was also a very active school choir and drama group.

Towards the end of its existence, Brownrigg also absorbed and educated problematic children and those in the care of social services, alongside the normal pupil intake.

However, Northumberland County Council pulled the plug on Brownrigg in 1985 and it lay empty for a number of years until the wooden buildings were taken over by Falstone farmer Donald MacLeod and his wife, Barbara, who had the idea of turning the wooden buildings into craft workshops and establishing an outdoor centre.

There was also talk of setting up a Sunday market on the site, but that never came to fruition.

Large parts of the school were demolished on county council instructions, before the football field was sold off for use as a caravan site, but the switch to self-catering chalets has been a success.

Andrew Birnie of Christie + Co. who is handling the sale, said: “This is a beautiful and rare freehold site in one of Britain’s most picturesque spots.

“The site has long been a firm favourite with large family groups, cyclists and outdoor enthusiasts, many of whom return year after year to enjoy the site’s relaxed atmosphere.

“Our client has developed the site over the years into a well-established family business with extensive facilities. Nevertheless, there remains considerable scope for growth, with increased marketing and further expansion of the unused buildings on site.”