Garden Wall Incorporating Gardener'S Cottage, Attached To Ford Place

The garden wall incorporating the gardener's cottage, attached to Ford Place, dates from the 17th century. The wall is made of red brick with irregular bonding and features a division wall in the center running north to south. It encloses a garden that is said to be the largest in Essex. The gardener's cottage is attached to this central division wall, which appears to be part of the cottage itself. The structure is likely from the 17th century and later, with the ground floor built in English bond red brick, while the southern half is rendered. The northern part is raised in Flemish bond brickwork, and the upper storey is timber framed and rendered. It has a hipped peg tile roof, with a 20th-century stack on the northwest angle and an earlier stack on the west face of the roof. The cottage has two storeys and features a late 20th-century weather-boarded lean-to on the north side. The west facade includes a boarded door beneath an arched head, with irregularly placed small pane casements that also have arched heads and cast iron lights with Gothic pointed arched panes. Most windows have two lights, except for the one to the left of the door, which is a single light. The timber framing is of reasonable scantling, and there is an earlier window opening at the rear. The front elevation features a 17th-century cellar access with a relieving arch and pegged timber surround.