Homes Of Rest, Church Of England Temperance Society

This is a rest home built in 1910, designed by Arthur C. Russell for the Sons of Temperance Friendly Society, Pension Almshouse Fund. It is located on Golfe Road in Clemswood. Constructed of red brick in Flemish bond, with brick and glazed brick dressings, and painted render to the first floor of the central section, the building features tile roofs with tile cresting and ornament, and a metal-roofed, wood-framed cupola on the central ridge. The upper-floor units are reinforced with fire-resistant concrete.

The building has a three-part composition. The central section is two-storey and projects forward, ending in a facing gable with a dentil cornice and swept eaves. It has a three-window range, with an oriel window in the centre set within a round-arched recess. There are two units on each floor. Flanking the central section are single-storey recessed wings with two windows each, leading to a recessed entrance porch. The returns of these wings are half-hipped and pierced by roundels, and broad swept eaves supported by wood brackets shelter concrete walkways to the side units.

Segmental-arched windows and round diaphragm arches define the recessed entrance porches; the central porch has a curved parapet with a "Moorish" effect. Moulded brick stacks are located on the short returns of the central range and a pair are on each rear roof slope. The original units contained a bedroom, living room, scullery, and WC, with fire escapes at the rear of the first-floor units.

Notable features include a rubbed brick plaque with mosaic decoration and inscriptions on the peak of the facing gable; mosaic paving in the entrance porch vestibules; a classically styled stone memorial plaque on the right return of the central entrance porch; and six inscribed foundation stones set into the plinth. Original plans indicated a two-storey extension to the rear centre, housing WCs and a fire escape, and a lean-to outshut with WCs attached to each pair of units in the lower wings. The design of the main elevation is marked by subtle proportions and slightly mannered details, creating a pleasing and elegant effect.