Over the last decade developers have made determined efforts to make their properties more suitable for a green lifestyle.

But even with the greatest will in the world, few of us will ever achieve that of a mill conversion near Wantage.

The apartment conversion of Dandridge's Mill, East Hanney, has been carried out by Hallidays Developments, an Oxfordshire-based company run by the Reily-Collins family.

The renovation project already has an impressive 91 per cent reduced carbon footprint, On a yearly basis the development, consisting of four sophisticated homes, will be saving 26 tonnes of carbon.

Sensitively restored, the conversion of the grade-II listed mill strikes the perfect balance between historical integrity and cutting-edge technologies.

Arranged over three floors are a three-bedroomed penthouse with a mezzanine level and a roof terrace, two three-bedroomed apartments and a three-bedroom house, orignally the wheel house.

Hallidays has used a combination of technologies, each working separately, to create homes that generate their own electricity. The first of these technologies is an Archimedean Hydro Screw, named after the ancient Greek scientist Archimedes, who invented the screw for pushing water uphill in order to irrigate crops.

Henry Reily-collins said: “About nine years ago, German manufacturer, Ritz-Atro, discovered by reversing the process, the weight of the water could turn the screw and generate electricity. The Archimedean screw being used at the mill is the smallest example in the UK.

“Other uses of low-carbon technologies include solar photo-voltaics, which work by converting sunlight into electricity. A water source heat pump collects hydrothermal energy from the river to run the communal heating system.

“Further energy-saving initiatives involve using insulation which exceeds building regulations and low-voltage and low-energy LED lighting, controlled by a state-of the-art digital dimming centre”.

All of these technologies have a direct impact on fuel bills, with an estimated annual cost saving of approximately 80 per cent.

Tracey Jefferies of Oxford-based selling agents Pink & Black, said: “In less than 12 months, this rather sad looking building has been restored to its original splendour and re-designed internally, without sacrificing all that is good about the past.”

Prices at Dandridge's Mill start from £650,000, For more details, call Pink & Black on 01865 515919