Foscott Old Church is near Foscote Manor and was converted from a church to a three-bedroom house in the 1980s by a team of architects who used it as an office.

It is a Grade II listed property and was the former parish church of St Leonard. The nave, which has been split into three floors, was built in the 12th Century and the chancel was extended in the 14th Century with the porch added during the 15th Century.

The house's current owners are Charlotte and Mark Wilson, who purchased it in 2000 after seeing photographs and falling in love with it.

Mr Wilson said: "I was working in the Far East in Singapore and Charlotte faxed me the details of the house and it looked so beautiful. When I came back, I went to see it and put in an offer.

"I was working in a high-tech industry and I was doing a lot of travel in the United States and it was nice to have somewhere to come back to that was of historical significance."

Mrs Wilson said: "There are various items around the house which are key features of a church.

"There are interesting pieces of work like a hangman which has been engraved into the stone which relates back to the Civil War. There is also a piece of wall which we discovered that has the date 1777 scratched on it, and there is a 17th Century bell which rings middle-C."

The original panels featuring the Lords Prayer, the Creed and the Ten Commandments still hang in the nave

Mr Wilson added: "It is a very warm building and it is nice to be surrounded by people's memories.

"We have had the privilege of being the most recent people to look after it."

The house is on the market for £695,000. For more information, contact Ella Homes on 01280 817400 or 01296 715066.