Gatehouse Buildings at former IMI Works

The gatehouse buildings, time office, and lodges date to 1915 and were designed by William Haywood of Buckland, Haywood and Farmer. The complex originally served the IMI Works.

The buildings are constructed of brick and stucco with slate roofs. They are arranged roughly north-south, with the central time office flanked by the two lodge buildings, with gates situated between them.

The buildings are symmetrically arranged, with the lodges framing the central time office and creating a pedestrian entrance to the site. All buildings have plinths of blue brick with rendered elevations above and largely retain original sash windows.

The central time office is lower than the lodges and features a projecting section on its western, front elevation. This section has an open pediment containing a recessed arched space that formerly held a decorative fanlight. A central door is set within a surround featuring Doric pilasters and a thick cornice, while the flanking wings have blind window panels. The rear elevation, facing into the site, replicates the front and displays the date 1915 above the door. The roof apex has a flat central section flanked by truncated chimneys.

The lodge buildings each have a central arched door on their western, entrance elevations, topped with decorative fanlights recessed within panelled reveals and slightly projecting surrounds. A continuous stringcourse runs between the ground and first floors, above which are two windows on each lodge. These sit below a projecting cornice with paired dentils at regular intervals. Each lodge has a pyramidal roof with a tall, central chimney stack featuring projecting panels on each face. Ramped wing walls project from the corners of the lodges, continuing alongside the road. Dwarf walls front the lodges, with most of the original metal railings now lost. The rear and side elevations each have two bays with arched surrounds to the ground-floor windows. Small projecting wings with hipped lean-to roofs are located on the inner elevations of the lodges, and large metal gates stand between these wings and the time office.

The time office interior has a central hall with panelled plaster walls and ceiling, featuring internal window openings and partly glazed timber panelled doors. A modern turnstyle frame is present. A room to the south exposes brickwork and roof timbers.

In the lodges, centrally-placed halls at ground floor level are accessed via arched openings from the front doors. Ground-floor rooms are accessed from these halls, including large living rooms. Most rooms retain surviving timber panelled doors. The staircases in each lodge have open treads with stick balusters and carved brackets.