A 17th-century mansion in the Yorkshire village of Hampole has languished on the property market for twelve years without attracting a buyer.
Ivy Farm Manor, situated near Doncaster, carries a price tag of just £395,000, despite boasting provisions for a swimming pool and garage, along with 3.5 acres of grounds.
Local residents attribute the relatively low asking price to the building’s deteriorating condition, while others suggest the property’s dark history has made it impossible to sell.
The manor is locally known as “The Doctor’s House” – a reference to its alleged former owner, psychiatrist Dr Neil Silvester.
Dr Silvester’s decision to release a psychiatric patient in 1991 resulted in the fatal stabbing of 12-year-old Emma Brodie, a tragedy that continues to overshadow the property more than three decades later.
Dr Silvester, served as the responsible medical officer at Doncaster Royal Infirmary’s psychiatric unit.
In late March 1991, 24-year-old Carol Ann Barratt was detained at the hospital after being arrested for threatening a 12-year-old girl with a knife at Frenchgate Shopping Centre.
Ivy Farm Manor hides a dark secret
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Barratt was sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 following assessments by a police surgeon, an approved social worker, and the duty psychiatrist.
Despite the rejection of a challenge to her detention through the Mental Health Review Tribunal, Dr Silvester authorised Barratt’s release on April 14, just over a fortnight after her admission.
The inquiry later established that Dr Silvester knew Barratt represented a “danger” to the public when he made this decision.
Just two days after her discharge, on April 16 1991, Barratt made her way back to the same shopping centre, where she fatally attacked 11-year-old schoolgirl Emma Brodie, who died from her stab wounds.
A fact-finding inquiry established by Trent Regional Health Authority delivered a damning verdict on the psychiatrist’s actions, concluding that his judgement “constituted a serious error of clinical judgment”.
Dr Silvester vacated the residence in 1991, and the manor has reportedly remained empty ever since.
The property first appeared on the market as early as 2014, with Google Street View images from August that year showing sale boards outside.
Its Rightmove listing indicates the asking price was reduced in September 2018.
Estate agents note the building lacks listed status, and suggest the grounds could be worth approximately £1 million once a buyer willing to undertake restoration comes forward.
The crumbling brickwork continues to loom over Hampole, a stark reminder of the tragedy connected to its former occupant.