Egerton Street County Primary School, Shelter And Railings

CHESTER CITY (EM)

SJ4166 EGERTON STREET 1932-1/6/90 (East side) 14/10/91 Egerton Street County Primary School, shelter and railings

II

Primary school, playground shelter and railings with gates, facing Egerton Street, Albert Street and Crewe Street. 1909-10. By John Douglas and WT Lockwood. For Chester City Council. Red brick with yellow terracotta dressings and brown tile roof. EXTERIOR: one and two storeys. The entrance front, north, to Albert Street has double doors with 2 bolection panels beneath circular glazed panels of 6 panes, fanlights of square panes and round-arched terracotta hood on consoles, at west end of 2-storey north-east wing. East of the entrance three 12-pane hopper windows. The second storey has four 15-pane sashes; the semicircular gable with terracotta bands, moulded coping and ball finials has a 9-pane circular window in an ornate terracotta surround. The west wing has a 16-pane hopper, three 24-pane hoppers under a half round gable with terracotta dressings, two 16-pane hoppers, a 24-pane hopper under a half-round terracotta-dressed gable and a 16-pane hopper. The west face to Egerton Street has 2 parallel wings at right-angles to street. The north wing has dual 9;9 pane hoppers to each side of a replaced door with simple overlight; a hipped roof surmounted by a cantilevered timber belfry on a timber-framed gablet. The south wing has three 24-pane hoppers under a half-round terracotta-dressed gable with volutes, bands, ornate cartouche, moulded coping and ball finials. The south front to the playground has replaced metal glazed double doors with sidelights; next, a brick and timber-framed lean-to-roofed porch with half-glazed door at back and a pair of half-round terracotta-dressed gables, each above three 24-pane hoppers, with volutes, bands, 9-pane round gable-window, in ornate surround, ball finials and moulded copings. The south end of the 2-storey east wing has altered lower storey, two 12-pane hoppers to upper storey and hipped roof. Main windows are basket-arched and have terracotta keys; cast-iron rainwater pipes and heads; eaves have exposed rafters; 4 shaped chimneys. The playground shelter also serves as a covered entrance from Crewe Street, south. Half-gable to Crewe Street with terracotta basket arch over ornamental cast-iron gate;

terracotta bands. 2 tapered cast-iron columns with moulded capitals carry the roof, hipped to north-west, with rafters and boarding exposed. INTERIOR not inspected. A good and complete example of the Edwardian schools built by Chester City Council, complete with shelter and iron railings with brick and terracotta plinth and piers, visible from all sides from the surrounding streets. (Hubbard E: The Work of John Douglas: London: 1991-: 204; 276).

Listing NGR: SJ4103466817