Brandon Court Flats

Brandon Court Flats, Lawrence Road, Southsea, Portsmouth

Orphanage and convent, later school, now flats. Built around 1900 with a later north wing, altered around 1985. Designed by Leonard Stokes.

The building is constructed in two shades of red brick laid in Flemish bond with steep pitched Welsh slated roofs. External brick stacks feature vertical triangular section brick strips and moulded caps positioned on the far left and far right, to the left and right of the central facing gable, and to the left and right of the gable ridge. Three brick stacks run along the ridge of the north wing.

The plan is a large irregular H-shape. The building rises three storeys across 11 bays (arranged 1/2/1/1/1/2/1/1/1/2/1). The main east elevation facing Lawrence Road has a strong vertical emphasis, marked by a fretted skyline of tall chimneys and gables. A wide brick pilaster at first floor level has wavy coping on the left flank and to the right of bays 1 and 6. The ground floor brickwork was rendered around 1985.

At the centre of the east elevation is a single-storey projecting flat-roofed porch. On its left is the original recessed boarded door with patterned iron straps at top and bottom, and a small iron-barred viewing panel set under a flat brick arch recessed behind an opening with stepped brick jambs and a brick ogee arch. The porch has a brick coped parapet with a pediment over the entrance. On the left and right returns are recessed casements set under flat gauged brick arches within openings with elliptical brick arches and brick labels.

To the left of the porch are six casements, each with a central transom and pivoted upper leaf two panes wide with segmental glazing bars and a four-pane lower leaf. At the far left is a similar paired casement. To the right of the porch are eight similar casements; the four right-hand casements within the slightly recessed north wing are wider. A stepped brick band runs at first floor level.

On the far left is a first floor eighteen-pane sash with transom and a six-pane casement set under a flat gauged brick arch with drip mould, flanked by vertical triangular brick strips running through the third floor with a moulded brick band. The third floor has a twenty-four-pane sash set under a flat gauged brick arch, cornice and dormer facing gable.

On the right and to the right of the centre part are similar paired first and second floor sashes with cornice and dormer facing gable. Each first floor bay is flanked by a late twentieth century twelve-pane sash. At the left and right of the centre part is a similar eighteen-pane first floor sash with transom and a six-pane casement to the left window. The left sash has on its left a late twentieth century twelve-pane sash. The third floor has a similar twenty-four-pane sash set under a flat gauged brick arch with curved brick pediment.

At the centre is an eighteen-pane sash set within a projecting brick bay over the porch, under a flat gauged brick arch, with stepped brickwork back to a recessed face. The first floor has an eighteen-pane sash set under a flat gauged brick arch with curved pediment. The second floor has a round-headed fifteen-pane unequal sash with radial glazing set under a round brick arch. The heads of the sashes are higher than the flanking windows.

To the right, the recessed north wing has on the first and second floors six twelve-pane margin glazed sashes, each with transom and a two-pane fixed casement with segmental top glazing bar set under a flat gauged brick arch. Each of the three right bays has a facing brick dormer gable with kneelers.

At the centre of the rear elevation is a four-storey tower two bays wide, with the elevation divided into four narrow bays by vertical brick strips. It has a heavy moulded brick castellated parapet crowned with an open copper domed cupola.

The west chapel wing has a large and elaborate Neo-Perpendicular stone mullioned south window with stone decorated strips flanking it, surmounted by figure finials.

The interior has not been inspected.