The Priory

This is a house, originally a farmhouse, dating back to the 15th century, with significant alterations in the late 17th and 19th centuries. It is timber-framed and has been roughcast rendered, with plain tiled roofs. The building has side stacks to the left and a ridge stack to the right of the central range. The ridge stack is constructed of red brick with a diagonal vertical brick band and an additional flue to the right. The overall plan is an irregular 'H' shape. The main range was originally an open hall of two bays, with a further bay, possibly two-storied, added to the south, which was modified in the 17th century to form a cross wing. A further cross wing was built in the 19th century, positioned obliquely beside the boundary to the north. The west facade features a two-panelled 19th-century door to the left of the main range, and three ground floor and four first floor hung sash windows with margin glazing bars. There are also two 18th-century iron casement windows with leaded lights on the rear elevation. Inside, the two-bay open hall has a 17th-century chimney stack inserted into the original cross passage position. The hall’s intersecting framed floors are also 17th century. A cambered tie beam displays a truss with solid bracing, plain chamfers, and a mortise for a crown post. A closed truss is located to the north, with weathered timbers above the tie beam indicative of a former external wall. The wall plates are chamfered with edge halved and bridled scarf joints. There are three pairs of rafters in situ, formerly smoke blackened, with evidence of a louvre on two randomly sited rafters; the roof was reconstructed with wind braces and side purlins. The north cross wing contains 19th-century details and a boxed staircase. A double cupboard with raised and field panels is located in a room to the south, and the room features a 19th-century tiled floor. This building demonstrates group value as a significant historical example of its type.