Prudential Assurance Building

The Prudential Assurance Building is an insurance company office constructed in 1905 by Heaton, Ralph and Heaton. It features red brick with matching terracotta dressings, and while the roof is concealed, it is likely slate. The building has a rectangular plan oriented at right angles to the street and is designed in the Flemish Transitional style.

The exterior consists of three storeys and four windows. The ground floor is faced with square terracotta tiles and includes a moulded cornice with trefoil arcading, which is interrupted by corbels of the first-floor oriel windows. Both upper floors have moulded cornices, with the second floor cornice featuring egg-and-dart enrichment. The central bays are topped with coupled Dutch gables, while the outer bays have balustraded parapets.

The entrance, located to the left, is framed by a semi-elliptical headed archway with a moulded surround that includes floral details. Above the entrance is an Art Nouveau name plaque that reads "PRUDENTIAL / ASSURANCE / BUILDINGS" on a shield with a foliated surround. The entrance opens into a recessed porch with a mosaic tiled floor inscribed "PRUDENTIAL ASSURANCE COMPANY." To the right of the entrance is a canted doorway with a moulded terracotta architrave, originally dark green glazed but now painted a stone colour. This doorway features a bold cornice with a cartouche inscribed "P.A.Co.Ltd," an egg-and-dart frieze, and a keyed oculus above. Adjacent to this is an arcade of four tall semi-elliptical arched windows with terracotta cusping and linked hood-moulds that extend to hatched shields beneath the cornice.

On the first floor, there are canted oriels with parapets inscribed "A.1905.D," while the second floor has shorter windows with distinctive zig-zag moulding at their heads. The building is further characterized by tall corniced side-wall chimneys. The interior has not been inspected.