Essendon Place (Eastern Electricity Staff Training College)

Essendon Place is a country house dating from around 1830, representing a remodelling of a late 18th-century building. The house was extended and refurbished in the 1920s by Sir Frederick William Lewis, later Lord Essendon, and further extended around 1960 when it was converted to its present use as a training college. The construction is of painted stucco with a slate roof. The main block, with 5 windows, features projecting square pavilions framing a tetrastyle Greek Ionic loggia. The end bays have shallow segmental-headed recesses and include sash windows. A 9-window extension adjoins the block on the left. The garden elevation includes 3-window end projections and a central, full-height canted bay window with a first-floor cast iron balcony. The interior is largely in a 1920s Georgian revival style and includes detailing such as a staircase and entrance hall. A ground-floor room on the left retains late 18th-century panelling, while some 1830 doorcases are found on the landing. A large extension was added to the north side around 1960.