The Leasowes (Halesowen Golf Club)

The Leasowes, now part of Halesowen Golf Club, is a Queen Anne style house dating from the 18th century. The main block is of three bays with flanking pavilions. The central two-storey block has three sash windows to the front, and three three-light windows with pediments, the lower-storey windows having segmental heads. Single-storeyed two-window wings connect to two-storey pavilions. The fenestration is consistent throughout, with hipped slate roofs. The rear facade features a convex Ionic porch supported by four columns, with a Palladian doorcase and flanking Palladian windows. The surrounding grounds have largely been adapted for use as a golf course. The house was the birthplace and home of the poet William Shenstone in 1714. Although not outstanding architecturally, it is granted a Grade I listing due to its literary and social significance and its importance in 18th-century landscape gardening.