Brick Barn And Shelter Shed At Finches Farm (130 Metres To South South East Of Farmhouse)

The Brick Barn and Shelter Shed at Finches Farm, located 130 meters to the south-southeast of the farmhouse, is a Grade II listed structure. The barn dates from the early to mid-17th century, while the shelter shed was built in the late 18th century. The barn is constructed of red brick in an irregular bond, featuring flint panels in the west gable and a weatherboarded top on each gable. It has a steep old red tile roof, although much of it has been replaced with corrugated sheets.

This tall, unaisled barn has eight bays and faces south, with two gabled porches located in the third and sixth bays. It has a high external plinth and added buttresses at the west corners. Each bay includes a vent-slot with an oak lintel. The barn showcases an unusual composite construction, with shallow bay posts rising from brick bases against the wall, supported by curved braces to cambered tie-beams, although all but three posts are cut off below the braces. The roof is a butt-purlin type, featuring two staggered purlins on each slope. The trusses consist of collar beams with inclined queen-struts positioned above and below the collar. The joints are numbered, and there are face-halved bladed scarf joints in the rear wallplate beneath the tie-beam ends.

The five-bay shelter shed extends south from the southeast corner of the barn, open to the yard on the west side. It has a flint rear wall with brick piers, a characteristic feature along Whempstead Road to the east. The red brick wall at the south end is a remnant of a 17th-century brick barn that has since been destroyed by fire. The shelter shed has a steep pitched roof now covered with corrugated iron and features a clasped purlin roof with inclined queen-posts and cambered tie-beams, along with an edge halved scarf joint in the front arcade plate supported by square posts.