Sparks' Daylight Bakery

The building is a bakery and front office, constructed in 1938 by Kitching & Co. of Middlesborough for Ralph Spark & Sons. It is built of cream and green glazed tiles, with a flat roof. The building is long, with eleven close-set windows on either side of a recessed entrance tower. The entrance has a double door with small glazed panels, framed by pairs of half-round green-tiled pilasters that extend above the roofline. Above the door are two flat strips that continue the pilasters, supporting a flat balcony that connects the two sides of the building, acting as mullions for a three-light first-floor window and rising to second-floor level. A round clock is set into the ceramic wall face above these elements, with a fluted, stepped parapet above. A projecting flat black-tiled hood, with metal borders and glass brick in the roof, is supported by long sloped brackets above the door. The side windows are divided by half-round pilasters and have continuous green drip courses and projecting cills. Inner quadrant angles feature curved windows with original horizontal barred metal glazing. Central windows are also original, while others have been replaced by modern casements. The outer windows are narrower, emphasizing the solid corners of the building. Curved, black-tiled plant boxes flank the entrance steps, with black tile also used as a plinth. Green coping is present on the parapet fronts of the side sections. A four-window left return retains two original first-floor windows and has seven ground-floor recesses, some with inserted windows. Behind the office section is the working bakery, comprising five set-back loading bays partly fronted in yellow brick – tiles may have been removed. A narrow entrance bay leads to a single-story bakery with an attic, constructed of original materials including a parapet, green bands framing openings, and pilasters framing the entrance. Further back is a two-story blank section and a tall tower chimney with angle buttresses, a stepped and fluted frieze, and a plain top coping. Only the right return of the office section is visible, with the remainder concealed behind later additions. The interior features hardwood floors throughout, along with good-quality veneered doors and doorframes. The general manager's office has a high dado veneered in burr maple striped with rosewood. Flanking offices, for the Secretary and Accountant, have similar dados but with plainer wood. The entire building is heated by ducted hot air from the bakery, demonstrating a functional integration of the retail and production spaces.