Stables And Service Wing To Former Darley Hall

The stables and service wing date from the early and mid-18th century, with origins in 1727 and extensions in the 1760s by Joseph Pickford of Derby. They were built as ancillary structures to Darley Hall (demolished in 1962) and are located in Abbey Yard. The complex is brick-built on a stone plinth, with slate roofing.

The stables consist of an L-shaped block with a detached service block to the north. The western and northern arms of the original L-shaped stables have been extended northwards. The service block encloses the yard to the east.

The western arm of the stables features a six-bay, two-storey western range. The front has a single-bay section with a segmental brick arched doorway and window lintel above a multi-paned window; to the south of a full-height circular arched carriage entrance in the second bay. The northern three bays have a rank of continuous carriage doors below a continuous lintel, with shallow windows above. The upper floor of the northern four bays has been removed, and the ground floor interior has been altered, creating a roof-open space. The roof is supported by tall wooden king-post trusses of roughly hewn timbers. A single-storey northwards extension under a lightly framed roof retains its horse stalls.

The seven-bay northern arm of the stables is brick built on a stone plinth, with shallow brick arched openings to wide doorways and multi-paned windows. A three-bay northwards addition has no plinth and altered windows. Internally, the western half contains a tackroom to the west and horse stalls to the east. The stall section has tiled walls, metal and wooden panelled dividers, ornamental metal-framed niches, ceramic troughs, and a channelled ventilation system. The eastern ground floor and its northern extension have been remodeled into a large room. Exposed roof trusses are of roughly hewn timbers.

The service building is a five-bay, single-storey brick structure on a stone plinth, forming the eastern side of the stable yard. Due to ground level changes, the rear elevation appears two-storey. It has plain, flat-headed openings and is included for group value only.