Park Wall Facing School Lane and 2 Pairs of Gatepiers and Flanking Walls at Main Gate to Princess Helena College, Opposite Crunnell's Green is a Grade II listed building in the North Hertfordshire local planning authority area, England. First listed on 8 February 1988. Wall, gatepiers.

Park Wall Facing School Lane and 2 Pairs of Gatepiers and Flanking Walls at Main Gate to Princess Helena College, Opposite Crunnell's Green

WRENN ID
inner-clay-hawthorn
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
North Hertfordshire
Constituency
Hitchin MP: Alistair Strathern (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
8 February 1988
Type
Wall, gatepiers
Address
Park Wall Facing School Lane and 2 Pairs of Gatepiers and Flanking Walls at Main Gate to Princess Helena College, Opposite Crunnell's Green, Preston
OS grid reference
TL 181 245
Coordinates
51.90708, -0.28326
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The park wall facing School Lane, along with two pairs of gatepiers and flanking walls, serves as the main entrance to Princess Helena College, located opposite Crunnell's Green. This structure was designed around 1908 by E.L. Lutyens as the entrance to Temple Dinsley for H.G. Fenwick. The current pair of iron gates was added after 1935 for the college.

The park wall is constructed of plum brick in English bond, featuring tile creasing at the half-round coping bricks above a sloping scarcement. Lighter red bricks are used for the angles of the semi-circular embayment where the gates are located. The gatepiers are made of similar but narrower light red bricks with Portland stone dressings. The wall stands approximately 1.75 meters high and has two asymmetrically placed gateways in a semi-circle. The northern gateway is currently the main entrance to the college, while the other, which has a field gate, previously led to farm buildings.

There are four identical piers, each measuring about 5 feet by 2.5 feet and loft high, with broader faces at the front and rear. Each pier features a squared stone plinth that projects slightly and is topped with an overhanging stone moulded cornice. This cornice includes a wide niche that is semi-circular in shape, with a moulded sill and apron, hemicycle gauged brick, and a tile head. Each pier has a keystone to the arch and recessed spandrels, with a brick check for the gate topped by a hollow chamfered stone. All four piers have the same detailing, showcasing excellent brick craftsmanship.

Local climate

Park Wall Facing School Lane and 2 Pairs of Gatepiers and Flanking Walls at Main Gate to Princess Helena College, Opposite Crunnell's Green sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 720 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 82% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 76% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 35 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 60% of listed buildings. Of these, 17 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

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