The Castle

The Castle is a house dating from 1908, designed by Edgar Wood, and subsequently altered and slightly enlarged. It is constructed of snecked sandstone rubble with a flat concrete roof concealed behind a parapet. The design is an eclectic mix of Modernist form with Arts-and-Crafts and Vernacular Revival detailing. The house is arranged on a square plan with principal facades to the west, south, and east, incorporating a small courtyard and outbuildings attached to the north side and the north-east corner.

The exterior has a two-storey, three-window asymmetrical composition, with the walls extending uninterruptedly to form a parapet with flat stone coping. The doorway, set up three segmental steps, has a deeply splayed reveal sheltered by a segmental cornice with decorative "dentilled" enrichment. A recessed, studded board door is set within the reveal. Above the cornice is a vertical slot or sunk panel containing a small two-light mullioned window, a taller window on the first floor and an upstand in the parapet with a matching small two-light opening featuring a nailhead-enriched lintel. A cross-window is centrally located at ground floor, with a three-light mullioned window above. A full-height canted bay window to the right has a mullion-and-transom window at ground floor, a mullioned window above, and a raised parapet with an opening mirroring that on the left. All windows have flush flat-faced surrounds and leaded glazing, with some featuring cast-iron casement openings. A chimney stands behind the parapet.

The south facade, with two windows, has a larger full-height canted bay to the right, and a cross-window and single-light window on the ground and first floors respectively. A rainwater head marked "1908" is also present. The east facade, partially rendered at first floor, features a single-storey canted bay window to the left with an enriched upstand to the parapet, and three-light mullioned windows on each floor to the right. A service wing is attached to the rear corner, now raised to two storeys. The rear of the building includes a two-stage stair-window, various two-light mullioned windows, and an attached courtyard wall with a round-headed doorway.

Internally, some original fittings and a simple dog-legged staircase remain, despite alterations. The house forms a group with the adjacent front garden wall.