St Marys House Including Lodge And Community Centre

St Mary's House, Lodge and Community Centre

This is the former Portsea Island Union Workhouse, now comprising 68 flats, located on St Mary's Road in Kingston, Portsmouth. The building was constructed in 1845 to the design of AF Livesay. It was substantially converted and altered in 1990, though the front façade remains intact. The structure is built in red and grey brick laid in Flemish bond with stone dressings, beneath a low pitch hipped roof covered in Welsh slate.

The main building is a substantial structure of 3 storeys spanning 39 bays. It features end bays and a central projecting section, both with brick rusticated quoins. The central part is particularly ornate, with a rusticated brick ground floor containing a recessed 6-panelled door at the centre, flanked by a 3-pane overlight set beneath a flat stone arch with rusticated voussoirs and keystone. The doorway has a wide stone architrave and is surmounted by a stone pedimented hood with plain cornice supported on brackets. To either side of the door are two recessed sash windows set within flat arched plain stone architraves. A brick band and stone band inscribed 'Portsea Island Union House' runs across this section.

The first floor of the central part contains five sashes, each set within a flat arched stone architrave. The three central sashes are particularly distinguished, each featuring a round-headed stone panel beneath a round gauged brick arch with large rusticated brick voussoirs, long and short brickwork to the jambs, and a moulded stone string at window hood level. The second floor has three circular windows, each set within a gauged brick circular surround. The central projection is topped by a heavy stone open pediment with flanking paired stone brackets, a recessed stone sloping parapet with a large stone apex block, and moulded coping.

Flanking the central section on left and right are 1-storey porches, each with an iron gate set beneath a flat stone arch with rusticated voussoirs and keystone, and a segmental stone pediment supported on brackets. Behind each porch is a 4-panelled door with a narrow side sash.

To either side of these porches the building continues with twelve 8-pane sashes on the ground floor, each set under a gauged flat brick arch with stone sill and brick band at arch level. The first floor has thirteen 10-pane unequal sashes set under gauged brick round arches with stone sills featuring square stone brackets. A brick band runs at sill and springer level. The second floor has thirteen 4-pane sashes set under gauged brick segmental arches with stone sills and brackets.

The building's outer sections feature projecting towers. Each tower is recessed behind slightly projecting sections on the ground and first floors, with similar sashes arranged symmetrically. On the second floor of each tower are three closely grouped narrow 10-pane unequal sashes with stone sill supported on four stone brackets, beneath projecting bracketed eaves and a pyramidal roof. To the outer sides of the towers are 2-bay wide projecting sections, each floor containing two sashes with similar fenestration continuing around the outward returns, with bracketed eaves. The far left and far right end bays are recessed and each contains one sash to each floor.

Exposed rafter feet are visible at the eaves throughout. Brick stacks project from the left and right of the central section and from the inward side of the far left and right towers, with two stacks positioned between each tower and the central part and at each end bay.

To the north of the main façade, on either side of the central axis, stand two separate 1-storey buildings. The left building now serves as the Lodge and the right as the Community Centre, the latter having been partially rebuilt in 1990. Each building has its inward-facing front centred on a 6-panelled door set beneath a flat stone arch with dropped keystone, flanked by engaged Doric columns, an entablature and an open segmental pediment. A brick band runs at frieze level.

To the left of the left building and the right of the right building is a 20th-century casement window set under a flat brick arch. Both buildings feature rusticated brick quoins and projecting eaves with paired shaped brackets at each corner, with hipped slated roofs. Round-headed sashes are set under gauged brick round arches with brick keystones, arranged with three to each south side and two to each north side.