Former C18 barrack block, Kitchener Barracks

This is a former 18th-century barrack block, part of Kitchener Barracks. It is located at the north-west corner of the parade ground.

The building is constructed of pale red brick in a Flemish bond pattern, with red brick and stone dressings. It has a slate pitched roof. The original block is oriented north-south and is two storeys high plus a basement, with a double-depth plan. A contemporary extension, built in a matching style and not of special interest, extends the length by three bays to the north. The front (east) elevation is two storeys high, while the rear (west) elevation is two storeys and a basement due to the sloping ground. The three surviving elevations feature brick plat bands and cornice bands, set beneath a brick blocking course that has been rebuilt to the front with a stone/concrete coping. Windows are hornless timber sashes with six panes to each, set in square openings with rubbed brick lintels and stone sills, and with paired lights to the south end.

The original entrance was likely on the western side, reached via steps over the basement level. Evidence of this arrangement, along with the replacement of an original window with the current doorway in the second bay of the east elevation, is visible in the building’s fabric. Photographs from the 1870s show a door in this position. The south gable remains, altered by the removal of the eastern stack, and the original north gable wall, visible above roof level, adjoins the extension. The building has been re-roofed. A single reconstructed dormer is present on the east elevation. The eastern parapet has been rebuilt, potentially during the removal of the two eastern stacks, and is distinguishable by its brickwork.

The interior has been completely modernized and no original features survive. The stair position has been altered, as its current location would have partially blocked the original west entrance.

The basement contains two chambers entered from ground level in the western elevation. In the southern chamber, a brick floor and arches in the walls remain, although the joists supporting the ground floor above are replacements. The northern basement chamber was not inspected.