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parksaward winner

Just champion!

It’s always a fiendishly difficult decision but, after much deliberation, we can finally reveal our new residential Park of the Year… Duvall Park Homes, in Oxfordshire. Alex Melvin finds out what makes it so special

One of the most pleasurable things about this job is rewarding excellence. But when it comes to PH&HC’s annual Park of the Year

award, it can be something of a pain. Why? Because of the sheer volume of outstanding residential parks up and down the UK. Choosing the crème de la crème is getting increasingly difficult!

Since the competition’s inception almost 20 years ago, we have anointed champion sites in almost every part the country. What,

PH&HC’s Alex Melvin with Duvall

Park Homes’ owner Libby

Durrant

PARKOF THE

YEAR

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parksaward winner

Above: Sponsor Towergate hands over the winning cheque to Duvall Park Homes

Above: Libby organised a jazz band to celebrate this momentous award

Above: The Lord Mayor of Oxford, Mohammed Altaf-Khan, addresses the park

Libby Durrant gives our prestigious

trophy a kiss

Above: Residents enjoy a dance

Above: Jane Stubbs and the Lord Mayor

then, makes a winning park? Some factors vary and some are subjective. Not everybody likes a rural location, for example; some favour a town, city or coastal park. Some like age-restricted sites while others prefer a mix of the generations. Some favour pet-friendly places while park perfection means a cat and dog-free zone for others. Family-run parks or big, established site operators? It comes down to personal taste…

Common threadsA couple of common threads bind all of our winners though: they’re all run by caring and supportive park owners and, most importantly, they all boast brilliant communities of friendly, welcoming and happy residents! This year’s winner, Duvall Park Homes, of Upper Heyford, near Bicester, in Oxfordshire, certainly meets these criteria!

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So how did Duvall Park Homes come to be this year’s top dog? Each year we ask residents to nominate their park and explain why it deserves our award. It’s an award that’s worth winning because the prize money, supplied by the competition’s sponsor Towergate Insurance, is a whopping £1,000. This is split into two sums of £500; one of which goes to the nominating resident to spend as they wish; the other £500 goes to the park’s owners, to be spent on enhancing the lives of the park’s residents.

This year we got more entries than ever. Our panel of expert judges, alongside sponsor Towergate, eventually settled on Duvall Park Homes. The winning entry came from park resident Jane Stubbs, who nominated her park via Towergate’s specialist park home forum www. parkhomeownersclub.co.uk.

A beaming Jane was both shocked and

thrilled to be told that her purple prose was the deciding factor for our panel of judges to give the nod to Duvall Park Homes in this year’s competition.

Lovely entryJane’s entry read: ‘Duvall Park Homes has that special something that sets it apart from other locations that I have lived in… its residents.

‘Ever since my husband Paul and I moved here a year ago, we have been welcomed with open arms by the residents, who cannot do enough for you, and are always there when you need a helping hand, advice or, even better, enjoying a great get together.

‘We have had our fair share of barbecues, house warmings, quizzes, birthday dos and New Year’s celebrations, reinforcing the spirit of the park.

‘The park is not just special because of its

JANE STUBBS, pictured here with her other half Paul, scooped our £500 prize for her lovely comments in praise of life at the park. The money will go towards the cost of remodelling the couple’s 1982 Omar Colorado home, which Paul, in particular, has already made great strides with.

ROBERT S. WILLIAMS, otherwise known as ‘Chief’ to his friends on the park, is quite a character who currently works as a stone mason after spending six years as a soldier with the Royal Green Jackets. His hobbies include listening to folk music, playing the harmonica and drinking in the nearby Barley Mow pub!

Quick chat over a cuppaAbove: No expense has been spared on the new development at Duvall

Above: An immaculate new home Above: New plots are spacious too

residents, but because it is in an ideal location, with bus stops to both nearby Bicester and Oxford conveniently located right outside the park. It is surrounded by beautiful villages and close to a canal for lovely riverside walks.

‘Thanks to the park’s excellent owners, the Durrant family, the park continues to grow and adapt to the residents’ needs and remains a lovely place to relax in with a community to be proud of.’

Very handyJane has lived at Duvall Park Homes with her other half Paul for about a year. The couple bought a 1982 Omar Colorado and have spent much of the past 12 months renovating it. Paul, who works as a carer, is very handy and has already done marvellous

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parksaward winner

things with the kitchen.Jane and Paul will spend their £500 on

further home improvements so winning the prize has come at a really good time!

Jane, who works part-time at Sainsbury’s, is able to get the bus to work from the park’s entrance. She said, ‘Life here’s great. We’re in a great countryside location, yet it’s still very easy to get about on public transport or by car.’

Jan has had an interesting life and career. She was in the army for 12 years, in military intelligence, finishing in 1996. She has spent time in Germany and, more recently, lived in Cyprus, moving back to England in 2013 before settling on park life and Duvall Park Homes in 2015. She added, ‘There’s always somebody to look out for you here.

‘Everybody’s so friendly we’re like part of the family already.’

Proud park ownerBut it wasn’t just Jane who was proud to win the prize. A delighted Duvall Park Homes’ owner Libby Durrant said, ‘We are over the moon to win this prestigious award.

‘It feels like we’ve been vindicated for all the hard work, time and money we’ve invested in the park over the past decade.

‘But while all of that’s very important, it’s the residents that make the park. They are really lovely. I’d like to thank them for voting for us and helping make us this year’s champion.‘

Libby was so thrilled to have won our award that he organised one of the best Park of the Year celebrations I’ve ever attended. On the day of our trophy and cheque presentation, there was a lively jazz band playing, a tasty hog roast on the go and free-flowing beer and wine from the impressive marquee Libby had erected.

The Lord Mayor of Oxford, Mohammed Altaf-Khan, also attended and gave a short speech in praise of the park’s owners and residents. Tellingly, almost all of the park’s 80 households turned out to see their site honoured, too.

It hasn’t always been parties and awards for Libby though. Duvall Park Homes, which Libby purchased ten years ago, was in a state of disrepair when he took over. There was no street lighting and no proper road network and only very rudimentary park infrastructure.

It has taken a lot of hard work lavished on the park by Libby and his family to get it up to its current award-winning standard.

Massive upgradeAs well as street lighting, the road network and some stunning new plots, Libby and his family have installed a plush sales and enquiries office, CCTV, communal park benches and a lovely fish pond.

Libby plans to spend the park’s winning £500 on benches around the pond. He had also planned to install some stone statues and a waterfall, costing £1,500, so the cash will help fund this, too!

Libby, who also owns other parks in Oxfordshire and Scotland and boasts more

than 30 years’ industry experience, feels Duvall Park Homes to be his crowning glory. ‘It’s a really special place,’ he added. ‘We’re in a superb location, yet still have quick and convenient links to Oxford, London and Bicester Village shopping centre. This is a great place to live if you are semi-retired and trying to find somewhere nice.’

Part of what makes the park so special is the excellent community spirit. Every three months Libby erects the marque for the residents to have a get together. Libby attends most of these events so he can socialise with the residents and understand what they want for the park.

There is no park residents’ association. Libby finds that indulging in an informal natter with the residents is the best way of nipping any potential problems in the bud. There’s clearly a great relationship between the site owners and the park residents.

Top locationAs well as its great atmosphere, Duvall Park Homes is also blessed with a top location surrounded by beautiful open fields and greenery. All of the residents I spoke with cited the park’s quiet and secluded feel as one of its main selling points.

In the nearby village of Upper Heyford, which residents can walk the 200 yards to or catch the bus, there’s also a brand new Sainsbury’s supermarket being built. On top of this, there’s a Wetherspoon’s pub,

‘We love our new kitchen!’When we asked park resident Jane Stubbs, who picked up £500 for nominating Duvall Park Homes, what she would spend the money on we got an interesting answer… and some great photos too!

Jane explained, ‘My husband Paul and I have been busy upgrading our Omar home, which is more than 30 years old, ever since we moved to the park. Paul is very handy and has already done a great job on overhauling our once tired and dated kitchen. We’ve also got new windows in, too. Winning this cash will really help us to forge on with our home renovation project so it’s come at a great time!’

Before

After

Above: An explosion of summer colour outside one resident’s park home

Above: Revelries continue at the park

park profilebeckhead park

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Duvall Park Homes info at your fingertips

All you need to know

LIVING COSTS

PLOT FEES£180 per calendar month.COUNCIL TAX£720 per annum (including water charges).GAS & ELECTRICITYResidents are free to pay and organise this for themselves.WI-FIDespite its countryside location, the park boasts excellent wi-fi coverage throughout.

FOR SALE AVAILABILITYAs we went to press, Libby was fielding enquiries for his development of new homes. There are a range of show homes available. Libby mainly works with Stately-Albion, Prestige and Omar but buyers are free to choose the make and model they prefer. Alternatively the sales team will walk prospective buyers through the process of designing a bespoke park home. All homes boast fully landscaped gardens, parking space and garden storage bases. However, if you have any particular ideas or requirements, the park’s team of workmen will carry out almost any kind of landscaping to create your ideal outside space. Duvall Park Homes’ dedicated sales team are available seven days a week. Please contact the park for more details.

OTHER PARK RULESThere are no resident children but visiting grandchildren are welcome. Prospective home buyers can bring pet cats and dogs of a reasonable size. The park is for those aged 50 plus.RUNNERS UPRed Deer Village, near Glasgow, and Deanland Wood, near Hailsham, in East Sussex, won our runner up awards. See next month’s issue for more on both!

VISIT THE PARKDuvall Park Homes,Camp Road,Upper Heyford, BicesterOxfordshire OX25 5LUT: 07785 525359E: info@duvallparkhomes.comW: www.duvallparkhomes.com

doctor’s, schools and gym.Other attractions close at hand include:

Blenheim Palace – Winston Churchill’s birthplace – only four miles distant; Bicester Village outlet shopping centre, which attracts shopaholics from all over the world; and Silverstone’s F1 race track (nine miles away).

The nearest rail station is the immaculately kept Bicester Village from where I picked up a train to London Marylebone with Chiltern Railways and was back in the capital in just 45 minutes.The park is also really close to Oxford – just a 15 mile, or 30 minute, drive away.

New developmentAs if winning our award wasn’t exciting enough, Libby had more news about developments at the park. Six months back Libby bought the adjoining touring caravan park, Heyford Lees Camping Park, and has received planning permission to site 50 twin unit park homes, ranging in size from 45ft x 20 to 60ft x 20, on it.

The first few homes are already in situ and they look pristine. Libby plans to remove all of the touring ‘vans and install those 50 exciting new models in two 25-home phases. There will also be storage space for motorhomes and caravans on the new development.

New homes will range from £250,000 to £280,000 and boast block-paved driveways, spacious gardens and parking. For more details, please contact Libby on the number provided in this article.

Final thoughtsTowergate Insurance’s head of park home and caravan, Adam Summersby, and senior marketing executive, Lauren Mason, both attended the awards presentation.

The pair were extremely impressed with the quality of this year’s entries, admitting it was more difficult than ever to choose a winner. Adam said, ‘Duvall Park Homes is a very worthy winner of this year’s competition. It was great to see so many residents in attendance for the award. It’s not hard to see from the smiling faces and welcoming characters on the park why this park won our award. The community spirit and social scene is clearly part of what makes it so special.’

Lauren added, ‘It’s our pleasure to sponsor such a brilliant competition.

‘We’ve got some interesting plans in the offing for next year’s competition so look out for information in the October issue of PH&HC and at www.parkhomeownersclub.co.uk.’

“Duvall Park Homes is a very worthy winner of this year’s

competition. It was great to see so many residents in

attendance for the awards do.”