Former St Anthony's Franciscan Preparatory School

Former St Anthony's Franciscan Preparatory School, Stony Stratford

This building consists of a large chapel with wings extending from its transepts. The south-east transept wing meets a range at right angles to the street front of four houses, forming a quadrangle. The complex was founded as St Paul's School in 1863 and subsequently enlarged. From 1900 it became one of Mr Fegan's Homes for Orphans, and was latterly a Franciscan Preparatory School. The chapel is attributed to Goldie and Child (George Goldie) and dates to circa 1860-70.

The chapel is a large abbatial-type church with an uninterrupted tiled roof. It is built of rock-faced rubble with brick quoins, dressings and a modillion cornice. The structure comprises a four-bay nave with buttresses, transepts and an apsed chancel, with a low narthex to the south-west. Windows are pointed. The main architectural emphasis is to the south-west, where a string course is stepped up and pointed to form a label over a large rose window containing smaller circles. The apse is unlit and decorated with blind brick arcading in two series below the eaves, with five buttresses. The interior is aisless, featuring a barrel vault on corbelled Corinthian columns.

The remaining buildings are also tiled and, except for the street front, are of rock-faced rubble with brick dressings.

To the right of the chapel stands a Gate Tower of three storeys with a crow-stepped gable above a giant pointed arch containing the entrance. A three-light oriel occupies the first floor and two pointed windows the second floor. Immediately to the right of the gate tower is an octagonal turret projecting from the building, with a belfry stage and steeple. A statue of St Anthony stands above double doors to the right.

The other buildings in the quadrangle and to the north-west of the chapel are of two storeys with attics. Those facing the quadrangle have half-hipped dormers, while the north-west range has bargeboards and finials. Windows are mainly pointed, some cusped within the quadrangle, mostly joined under relieving arches. The north-west wing spans seven bays separated by buttresses. At the north-east corner is a stair turret with a belfry stage and pointed roof.

The street front dates to circa 1860s-80s and incorporates earlier buildings. It consists of four three-storey houses, with the end house to the south-east to be described separately. The houses have high-pitched tiled roofs, with banded colours on the house to the north-west, and moulded cornices. The fronts are of irregular ashlar with brick chimney stacks. The north-west house has a moulded kneeler to the verge, two gabled dormers, and contains 4 windows; the next house has three dormers and 2 windows; the third house has 4 windows and no door; the south-east end house has 3 windows. Most windows are two-light sashes except for three-light windows on the ground and first floors of the house to the left of the south-east end house. Windows are set in moulded reveals with stone mullions and keyed heads. The north-west house has a triangular light above its door, and the next house has a pointed-arched light above its door. Adjacent to the north-west house is an arched entrance of two orders with a panel above.

The south-east end house has been recently reduced by one window and rendered with incised coursing. It has a low-pitched slate roof, two glazing-bar sash windows and a triangular light over the door. It is brick-built at the rear. A dated sundial mentioned in the previous list is now gone.

The former school building and the low street wall in front form a separate group.