Stamford Park junior and infant schools, master's house and play sheds with surrounding walls, gates and railings

This primary school complex, dated 1905, was designed by architect Henry Lord. Built of Accrington brick with terracotta detailing and Welsh slate from Felinheli, the buildings feature timber windows throughout. The site comprises an infant block, junior block and master's house arranged along the north side of a roughly rectangular plot, with playground shelters on the south side, all enclosed by boundary walls topped on three sides by railings.

Design and Materials

The school is designed in a restrained Queen Anne style characterised by tall chimneystacks and flat-arched lintels with prominent keystones. Most windows are sash windows with horns and glazing bars, though some hopper windows and fixed lights are also used. A canted brick plinth runs around the entire complex.

Junior Block

The principal block occupies the central position within the site. Its plan comprises a double-height hall flanked east and west by classrooms, with corridors to north and south giving access to additional classrooms, offices and other spaces.

The north front presents a symmetrical composition with three-bay pavilions to left and right, linked by separate boys' (east) and girls' (west) entrances to a double-gabled central block. Each pavilion features two windows per bay, with the central pair slightly taller beneath small gables. The central windows of the right-hand pavilion are bricked up. At the outer end of each pavilion, a rainwater pipe terminates in a bowl-shaped lead hopper. The entrances have shouldered gables bearing plaques marked BOYS and GIRLS above segmental-arched doorways. The boys' entrance retains its double doors, and both entrances retain their overlights, though the girls' entrance now has a replacement single door with side panel.

The central block has two sections, each slightly advanced beneath its gable, with two tall windows. Where these sections meet the gables they have coped shoulders, and above this the brickwork feathers back beneath the gable coping with a flashing detail to shed water. The gables have shaped kneelers. Smaller windows appear outside and between the two advanced sections, making three in total. Above the central window is a segmental-pedimented plaque (now painted) inscribed "1905 / STAMFORD PARK / COUNCIL SCHOOL". Three-windowed, flat-roofed toilet blocks fill the angles between the central block and the entrances.

Above the central block, partly obscured by it, rises the north wall of the hall, which has prominent shoulders with small arched gablets. A tall central segmental-arched window is flanked by shorter flat-headed windows, and a decorative gable plaque is dated 1905. A short gable stack with clay pot stands above. Beyond the ridge rises the louvred timber central vent, which features angled columns, a moulded and arched cornice, a lead dome and a flagpole.

The east elevation begins with the eastern pavilion showing three tall windows beneath a shouldered gable. To the left is a lower outshut with eaves gutter. Set back to the left of this is the east wall of the principal block, which is four bays wide. Each bay comprises two outer windows and two taller central windows. The outer bays have hipped roofs with gables over the central windows, while the two central bays have full-width gables. The valleys have parapets with lead bowl-shaped hoppers, the central one having a cast-iron upper portion dated 1905. Above the three valleys, the set-back dormers of the hall are visible. These have shouldered gables with stacks, each containing two windows. The cheeks are of lead, and parapets link the dormers. The central gable has a decorative plaque. To the left of the four main bays, projecting slightly, is the east wall of the southern corridor, which has a flat-roofed entrance porch (with parapet) projecting to the north, and a gabled end with a canted bay window with sprocketed roof in lead.

The south (rear) elevation presents a simpler version of the north front, with a double-gabled central section (without projections) and toilet blocks in the angles between this and the corridor, which has simple windows. At the left is the plain brick gabled end of the staff-room extension. The south wall of the hall has a projecting central shaft with gablet and slim window, flanked by a window on each side. Set well back to either side of the main rear wall, the south walls of the northern pavilions are visible. These have a larger outer gable, smaller inner gable and short flat inner parapet, with an arched entrance in the angle with the main block. The entrances have modern canopies attached and replacement doors, but retain their overlights. The smaller gables have canted bays beneath, with shallow lead roofs.

The west elevation mirrors the design of the east wall, save for the plain side wall of the staff-room extension at the right (which obscures the entrance porch), and without the plaque on the central hall dormer.

Inside, the plan-form is little altered. Classroom entrances are generally recessed within larger archways. Most rooms have timber eaves cornices. Roof structures are visible in the hall and some classrooms, comprising queen-post trusses with raised tie-beams, struts and braces, supported on painted corbels (probably stone). The glazed-brick dado and woodwork are painted. All light fittings are modern. In the north-east corner a cooking range is covered but reported to survive against the wall of the head's office, probably indicating where domestic science teaching took place. The hall and corridors retain wooden floors and classrooms retain their original half-glazed doors but with replacement handles. Former cloakroom areas off the south corridor retain Art Nouveau gateways. A modern kitchen and suspended ceiling have been inserted in the north-western room.

Infant Block

The infant block stands west of the junior school, to which it is now attached by an extension. It follows a similar plan but without a southern corridor, and has modern extensions against the original south wall.

The north front has a flat-roofed four-bay central section with a parapet, flanked by gableted arched entrances which link to two-bay blocks with pitched roofs and exposed eaves. These blocks have parapeted gables visible in profile, and canted bay windows in the outer ends with sprocketed roofs in lead. At the left, a modern entrance and the plain library extension link this block to the junior school. The entrance arches are inscribed in relief "INFANTS' ENTRANCE". The left-hand doors have been replaced by a fixed window but both entrances retain their overlights, and the right-hand entrance retains its original half-glazed doors with recessed panels. Set back above the central block is the gable of the hall, which has a central arched window flanked by shorter windows, and a decorative gable plaque dated 1905. The louvred timber vent is also visible, with corner columns, moulded cornice, lead dome, ball finials to each corner and a flagpole.

The west elevation begins with bay 1 (left) showing the gabled end and canted bay window of the front corridor. To the right, beyond a short set-back link, is the western classroom block, which is three bays wide. The first two bays have gables with a parapet concealing the valley between, while the third bay has exposed eaves and a central arch-gabled dormer. Each bay has a tall arched central window flanked by shorter windows. The valley has an outlet with hopper dated 1905.

The south elevation shows the western classroom block with a gabled rear wall containing three windows, matched by the south wall of the eastern classroom block. Set back between these is the south wall of the hall, which is gabled with corner pillars (the right-hand one apparently a truncated chimney-stack), and windows flanking a gableted projecting central shaft with a high-level window. At ground floor the hall and eastern classroom block are obscured by plain, flat-roofed extensions, with a projecting glazed canopy. Set well back to the right is the plain south wall of the library extension which links this block to the junior school.

The east elevation matches the detail of the west wall, but without the southern arch-gabled dormer.

Inside, the interior details closely match those of the junior school. Toilets have been inserted in the former cloakroom spaces. An opening has also been made in the east end of the south wall to allow access into the newest extension. The dormer windows lighting the hall are PVC replacements.

Master's House

The master's house has an L-plan with an entrance and staircase bay in the angle. Windows are over-sized PVC inserts echoing original timber sash boxes. The principal façade faces east and is two bays wide, the left-hand bay gabled and the right-hand bay with its first-floor window in a central monopitch dormer rising through the eaves. Below this is a canted ground-floor bay window. The left bay has barge-boards and one window at first floor and two unequal windows at ground floor. At the right is a ridge stack with two pots, and at the left is an angled end stack with three pots and a gas cowl.

The north elevation shows bay 1 (left) gabled with one segmental-arched window to each floor and a gable stack, while the recessed bay 2 has exposed rafters, a first-floor window and the entrance with lean-to canopy on brackets.

The west elevation has both bays gabled, with bay 1 recessed. Bay 1 has a tall stair window and small first-floor window. Bay 2 has two unequal first-floor windows and a two-light, ground-floor square bay window.

The south wall faces the playground and is blind save for a small ground-floor window to the left. A small central lean-to joins the garden side wall, and above this the angled stack rises from the eaves.

Inside, the plan-form is retained with one doorway relocated. The parlour retains its door and architrave, cornice, dado rail and original fireplace. The simple staircase with ramped skirting is also retained but there are no features of note upstairs.

Boundary Walls, Gates and Railings

The site is bounded to the north, east and west by a dwarf wall with stone coping and original wrought-iron railings, with original pedestrian gates on the north and west sides, plus later vehicle gates (incorporating the railings on the west side) on the west and east sides.

The south side is bounded by a brick wall with terracotta coping, which forms the rear wall of two playground shelters with hipped slate roofs and cast-iron columns. The eastern shelter also retains a disused toilet block, whose interior was not accessible at the time of inspection in 2019.