Highfield Junior School

Highfield Junior School is a school building constructed in 1911 by G H Widdows, the architect for Derbyshire County Council. It features brown brick that is pebbledashed up to the sill height, with stone and tile dressings. The roofs are steeply pitched and covered with plain tiles, showcasing wide overhanging eaves and vented brick stacks at the ridge and side walls. The gables are approximately 3 feet narrower than the walls below and have tile dentilled eaves. The building is primarily a single storey with attics in certain areas and consists of three ranges connected by transverse passages.

The north front has a central gabled bay with attics, flanked by large external brick stacks and lower wings on either side. It features a central segment-headed arch with stone impost blocks and a double keystone, with radiating tiles in between. Behind the arch is a plain plank door, with two 2-light casement windows on each side. Further out, there are two 3-light casement windows with low transoms on either side. Above the central bay is another 3-light window, which has a blind semi-circular recess above it with a stone keyblock. On either side, there are lower single casement windows with large hopper heads, and at the top of the gable, there are three small louvred vents.

The south elevation mirrors the north front. The west and east elevations each have three gable ends, with a central segment-headed blind recess featuring a stone keyblock and three casement windows within. Flanking the gables are horizontal stone bands with three vertical stone bands. Between the gabled bays, the transverse passages have three pairs of double-glazed doors set behind an open arcade supported by wooden posts with curved braces at the top, except for the southern passage on the west elevation, which has been boarded in. Above these passages, there are three roof dormers, each with 3-light casement windows. All windows throughout the building are small pane casements. Highfield Junior School was built as part of a group with Highfield Infants School, and Widdows was known for his innovative approaches to school planning and ventilation.