The House was purchased by a local estate agent, Thomas Curtis Hills (c.1883–1957), in 1935. Aware of the threats posed to the house, he moved into it with his wife, Beatrice Nellie Foster. In 1941, amid the Second World War, the government's Assistance Board took control of the house's ground floor, using it as an office to aid those left homeless by The Blitz. Commenting on this situation, a visitor to the building, Prime Minister of New Zealand Peter Fraser, stated that "I think Morris would be pleased to know that a house of his is being used for such a purpose. The house is being devoted to the service of the people and Morris was for the people all the time." An air raid shelter was constructed in the House's gardens for the use of the Assistance Board's staff. After the war, the House had fallen into a poor state and the Hills were keen to sell it. In 1950, they unsuccessfully attempted to sell it to the National Trust and then the Labour Party, before offering it for £5000 to anyone "willing to preserve it for the nation". The same year, it was designated a Grade I building by English Heritage.