52-53 St Martin’s Lane

Terraced house dating from the later 18th century, with a shopfront component that probably formed part of the original building. The house has undergone later alterations, including the installation of a mid-20th century shopfront and remodelling to create a ground-floor shop to the north. The building's southern entrance serves the Quaker meeting house constructed within and behind the original 18th century house in 1954-1956, designed by Hubert Lidbetter; the meeting house itself to the rear is excluded from the listing.

The house is constructed of London stock brick laid in Flemish bond. The building currently has a flat roof terrace with stacks rising to either side. Window openings contain timber sash frames.

The building occupies a roughly rectangular plot extending eastwards from St Martin's Lane, with a projection to the north-east. The entrance to the meeting house at the south end of the principal elevation opens into a passage within the house that leads to the unlisted main part of the meeting house, which sits outside the footprint of the Georgian house.

The St Martin's Lane elevation comprises three bays arranged over four storeys. The ground floor features a mid-20th century neo-Georgian timber frontage with pilasters framing the doorways and a swagged frieze. A central doorway provides access to the upper levels of number 53; to the north is a later shopfront, and to the south is the meeting house entrance with a moulded granite surround. Above this doorway is a metal sign with raised Roman lettering reading "FRIENDS MEETING HOUSE". Painted stucco or stone cill courses and architraves adorn the first-floor windows. Window openings decrease in size with each storey, each containing six-over-six sash frames. The elevation has a crowning cornice and blocking course; above this sits the metal balustrade of the roof terrace. The rear brickwork is laid in English bond with cambered-arched window openings. The rear wing shows considerable rebuilding and alterations to openings.

The interior comprises several distinct spaces. The ground floor and basement to the north are in commercial use, with a passageway to the meeting house to the south; the majority of the house is in domestic use, with the western and south-western part of the first floor in office use.

The ground floor and basement to the north have been largely modernised with few historic features remaining. However, brick vaults survive beneath the southern part of the house, some now plastered. To the east is the lowest flight of the original rear stair, featuring stick balusters, a moulded newel, plain skirting and matchboard panelling. A shallow area to the west is now lit by pavement lights. On the ground floor to the south, a wide vaulted passage leads to the unlisted meeting house.

The central entrance to number 53 leads to a narrow passageway through the main part of the building to the rear stair; the passage appears adapted from an original route, with pilasters possibly marking the position of a former opening. The geometrical stair rising to first-floor level has an open string and stick balusters, with a wreathed, ramped handrail and square-moulded starter-newel; the stairwell has dado-height panelling. The principal stair, rising from first to third floor at the centre of the building to the north, is of open-well form with similar detailing to the rear stair but with a more pronounced volute; a glazed cupboard is incorporated at half-pace level between the second and third floors. On the second floor, the front and south-east rooms have later timber chimneypieces with Adam-style detailing and moulded cornices.

The western part of the first floor, currently in office use, consists of a large room to the west and a smaller room to the south-east, with a large opening between the two. Both rooms retain panelled window embrasures with original shutters, tall skirtings and drip cornices. Both rooms retain moulded timber chimneypieces; that in the western room features what appears to be an early-19th century register grate, whilst that in the south-east room has a late-19th century grate.