National Westminster Bank

This is a late 19th-century bank located on Fore Street in Hertford. The front facade is constructed of yellow ashlar sandstone, with red and yellow brick rear extensions, and Welsh slate roofs concealed behind a front parapet. The architectural style is Free Rhenish Renaissance.

The two-storey, five-bay front features an entablature at first-floor level, with a cornice that projects forward over the ground floor pilasters and across the central bay, supported by carved consoles. The first floor windows are plain glazed casements with upper transom lights, recessed within surrounds of pilasters on panelled plinths, separated by an attached column on plinths. These features support an entablature with a panelled fascia and a dentil frieze, with a cornice projecting forward for the central bay, supported on carved brackets and modillions. Banded, modified Corinthian-style pilasters are located at the left and right, and flank the central bay.

The ground floor has four round-arched windows with large central lights and margins, recessed within surrounds with attached banded columns, moulded archivolts, and carved console keyblocks. Panelled spandrels surround the arches and extend below the sills. The main bay divisions have panelled pilasters. A central doorway features twin leaf hardwood panelled doors with a semicircular wrought-iron fanlight within a Serliana surround, with arched side niches, flanked by attached Corinthian-derived colonnettes, raised on panelled plinths. The doorway is raised on stone steps with a plain offset plinth. The rear extensions have been considerably altered and are of limited architectural interest.

The interior of the banking hall was completely remodelled, and the upper floors were not inspected.