New homes in Enfield listed mansion: grand apartments for sale in leafy north London party pad known for its links with royals and MI6

At Enfield, neighbouring Barnet in leafy outer north London, the first of 270 new homes have been unveiled at Trent Park.

An ancient former hunting ground of the Tudors, the 413-acre estate has a listed mansion surrounded by parkland, nature trails, bike paths, lakes, forest glades and woodland, a golf course, an equestrian centre and a wildlife sanctuary.

During its early 20th-century heyday, the estate was owned by Sir Philip Sassoon — politician, art collector and legendary socialite — who hosted glittering parties for the rich and influential, among them Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson, Winston Churchill, Charlie Chaplin and Rex Whistler, whose murals adorn the mansion’s state rooms.

Requisitioned by the War Office in 1939, Trent Park was turned into a surveillance centre, with MI6 obtaining vital intelligence by bugging conversations between high-ranking German officers incarcerated there.

Today the estate has 56 acres of private grounds where developer Berkeley is building clusters of semi-detached and detached houses, while the mansion is being split into grand apartments.

A former dairy in a quiet corner of Trent Park has been redeveloped into eight two-bedroom apartments with either a garden or large terrace.

At Woburn Cottage, pictured above, residents’ amenities include a gym within the original orangery plus an outdoor swimming pool and tennis courts.

There is a courtesy shuttle bus to Oakwood Tube station, which has 26-minute trains to King’s Cross on the Piccadilly line.

Prices from £655,000. Call 020 3811 0527.