Kingsbury Manor

Kingsbury Manor is a house built in 1899 by architect W. West Neve for Mary Blair, Duchess of Sutherland. It was converted to offices in the late 20th century. The building is constructed in red brick cavity wall in stretcher bond with applied half timbering to the first floor and machine tile roofs, executed in the Arts and Crafts style.

The house comprises two storeys and a dormer attic. The south front presents a four-window range with a single-storey canted bay window to the right and left, linked by a continuous hipped roof with two square timber posts forming a three-bay open loggia between them. The posts are of square section with solid arched braces. The bay windows contain one o-light transomed casements with leaded glazing. A four-panelled doorway is offset to the west with brass hinges cast with irregular tendrils. An overlight and two-light casement are positioned to the right, with one S-light mullioned window further right. The first floor features heavy scantling framing with a middle rail forming a sill band to three S-light leaded casements and one two-light casement. A hipped roof with one central dormer under a shouldered gable displays the date in pargeting: AD 1899. Late 20th-century dormer casements are present. Several irregularly-placed panelled stacks are visible on the south elevation.

The east return contains a central gabled porch with the roof carried on one pier and column either side, with glazed north and south sides above brickwork. An S-panelled inner door has the upper three panels glazed. Elaborate brass hinges are fitted. An external stack to the left is gabled back to the main roof. A three-light transomed casement is positioned to the right, followed by an S-panelled door with the upper three panels glazed, and a hipped kitchen extension against the north return. The first floor is lit through two-, three-, and four-light casements. A dormer with shouldered gable is fitted with a four-light leaded casement.

The west return features a ground-floor loggia under a hipped roof supported on three square timber posts with solid console brackets, and an S-light casement to the right. An external stack is present. The first floor contains applied studwork and one four-light and one two-light leaded casement. A dormer window with shouldered gable is fitted with a six-light late 20th-century casement.

The north return has a rendered and whitewashed first floor with scattered casements of varying lights.

Internally, the south entrance leads to a staircase hall. A fireplace with projecting side screens is panelled in two tiers, with fire cheeks and overmantel tiled with 18th and 19th-century coloured Dutch tiles. The ceiling and underside of the staircase feature low relief plaster geometric patterns. Dado panelling is present throughout.

An open-well staircase is separated from the entrance hall by an arched panelled screen. The side walls are treated with arched and square panelling with entactic pilasters fluted at the top, developed into an open balcony at the first-floor landing. The balcony was glazed in the late 20th century to form an office reception area.

A ground-floor east room contains sixteen early 18th-century Dutch tiles with coats of arms of trading centres set into a frieze behind four narrow columns. The west room displays low relief geometric plaster ceiling patterns and lugged plaster wall panels.

Internal mahogany doors throughout are fitted with four vertical moulded panels and brass hinges with irregular tendril castings. A first-floor bathroom contains 18th and 19th-century Dutch tiles (designated for men's use only).