Former Midland Bank

Former bank, designed by the renowned Bradford architects Lockwood and Mawson for the Yorkshire Banking Company, built 1878-1879. A small extension was added in 1921 to designs by London architect T B Whinney, followed by subsidiary extensions in 1967 and 1968.

The building is constructed from Portland stone and sandstone ashlar with a slate roof. It is a corner building with an angled corner containing the public entrance. The original structure comprises three storeys with a basement and an attic storey; the eastern extensions are of two storeys.

The exterior is designed as a stone-fronted palazzo. A banded rusticated basement plinth underpins the building, with the ground floor featuring bands of reticulated rustication and ashlar to the upper floors beneath a deep, modillion cornice. Each outer gable displays a moulded ashlar stack, with two similar stacks positioned in front of the ridge of the Parliament Street elevation.

The angled entrance bay is flanked by giant fluted Corinthian pilasters set upon the banded ground floor. An enriched, shouldered gablet tops the entrance, surmounted by a segmental-arched pediment and finial and flanked by urns. The doorway itself has an ashlar doorcase with enriched pilasters on high bases featuring metal lion head bosses, and a triangular pedimented hood with a cartouche dated 1879 mounted on giant, curved brackets. Above stands a tripartite first-floor window with a central bracketed triangular pediment, and a similar tripartite window on the second floor with a central segmental pediment. The attic window is a two-light casement with a lugged ashlar frame, flanked by swags in the frieze.

The west (Parliament Street) elevation comprises six bays. The first bay is slightly recessed at ground floor level; the upper floors are separated from the remaining bays by a giant fluted Corinthian pilaster with an urn positioned above the cornice. The ground floor contains a doorway with two steps, a six-panelled door and rectangular overlight. Above this is a similarly sized four-light window with a giant sculpted head keystone and reticulated rusticated voussoirs. The other ground-floor bays have tall square-headed windows also featuring reticulated rusticated voussoirs and giant sculpted head keystones, with large single-pane window frames fitted with transoms and smaller upper panes. The first floor has six square-headed windows with two-pane horned sashes and moulded ashlar surrounds topped by triangular pedimented hoods on brackets. The second floor displays six square-headed windows with moulded ashlar surrounds and segmental pediments. The attic storey has six two-light casements with lugged ashlar frames. The basement plinth contains six square-headed openings with metal grilles featuring lion heads.

The south (Whitefriargate) elevation is of five bays, the fifth bay being lower at two storeys with a basement. A giant fluted Corinthian pilaster stands to the right of the fourth bay, with an urn above the cornice. The first to fourth bays follow the same window detailing as the Parliament Street elevation. The fifth bay features banded rustication matching the basement plinth, with reticulated rusticated banding on the ground floor. The first floor displays banded rustication with a balustraded parapet above. The ground floor has a wider square-headed window with reticulated rusticated voussoirs and a giant sculpted head keystone. The first floor contains a wider square-headed window with a giant keystone. Both windows are fitted with three-light casements with transoms and smaller upper panes. The basement plinth to the Whitefriargate elevation has three square-headed openings with similar lion head grilles.

Interior

The corner entrance opens into the banking hall with a raised ground floor. The hall features a moulded cross beam ceiling enriched with modillion cornices and decorative plasterwork, supported by fluted Corinthian columns on high bases. An octagonal raised lantern occupies the north-east corner. Parts of the south and west walls retain timber panelling beneath the window sills. The lower entrance area has been fitted with modern metal and glass balustrades, and alterations have been made particularly on the north side of the banking hall to accommodate cashiers desks and cash machine positions. The narrow rooms beyond have had lower ceilings inserted to create mezzanine rooms above; these spaces retain their modillion cornices and enriched plasterwork. A lift has also been inserted.

The manager's office in the south-east corner (1921 extension) is separated from the main banking hall by a timber panelled and part-glazed screen with a half-glazed door on the left-hand side. The room features half-height timber panelling with horizontal fielded panels over vertical panels and a dentil cornice. The east wall panelling incorporates a central fireplace, and the north wall has a four-panelled door with timber moulded architrave.

In the north-east corner, to the rear of the staff entrance, is an open well staircase with a swept, moulded timber handrail, decorative cast-iron balusters and newel post, a curtail step and decorative tread ends.

The first-floor and second-floor rooms have moulded cornices and timber mantelpieces of various designs. The painted mantelpiece in the first-floor south-east corner room (1921 extension) features a dentil cornice. The attic-storey rooms do not have cornices, and the mantelpieces have been removed. Most of the doors on the upper floors are modern replacements with circular porthole glazing, though the moulded timber architraves have been retained.

The basement, reached by a flight of stone steps, contains two strong rooms with an encircling corridor.

The north-east extension (mid-twentieth century, 1967) also contains two strong rooms with an encircling corridor on the ground floor. The room above has no features of particular interest. The staircase on the east side of the building has square steel balusters with steel sheeting forming a mid-rail and a plastic-coated handrail.