7, South Drive

House, c1908-9, designed by the architect Frank Morris (1871-1908), with 20th-century extensions.

The building is constructed in red brick with a tile roof, tile-hanging, stone and buff brick detailing. It is a three-storey house with the second floor contained within the roof space, arranged around a central entrance hall or landing on each floor.

The house has two main facades. The east facade fronting South Drive is the entrance facade, nearly symmetrical in composition with three bays and prominent horizontal brick and stone banding. It features two projecting tile-hung gabled bays with two-storey bay windows flanking the central entrance bay. The entrance itself has an unusual Arts & Crafts wooden porch with a multi-paned stair light, surmounted by a roof dormer. Two brick chimney stacks sit on the ridge to the north and south, one perpendicular and the other diagonal to the ridge. The replacement front door is panelled with stained glass lights and is flanked by further stained glass lights. A kitchen range addition to the north has been constructed in a complementary style.

The west garden facade is asymmetrical, featuring a gabled bay to the north, a tile-hung roof dormer to the south, the kitchen extension and a rear 20th-century conservatory. This elevation is distinguished by polychrome brickwork with horizontal banding delivered in red and buff brick, buff brick also being used to create exaggerated window surrounds. Stone quoins mark the corners of the building as they do at the front.

The interior contains a ground floor central entrance hall with staircase to the east. A large living room to the south has a replacement fireplace and modern conservatory addition to the west. A dining room with replacement fireplace lies to the north, with an additional small living room to the west. A modern kitchen occupies the 20th-century extension. Bedrooms on the first and second floors retain cast iron decorative fireplaces with wooden surrounds on the upper storey. The original open-well staircase has a wooden balustrade, square newel posts and a moulded banister. Surviving original features include iron window furniture, door knobs and lock plates, panelled internal doors and moulded architraves.

7 South Drive dates to c1908-9 and was designed by Frank Morris, son of Joseph Morris who founded the family architectural firm. The design is sometimes attributed to his sister Violet, though Frank seems more likely on stylistic grounds. The house was originally called 'Clun' and was built for Miss Emily Georgina Howard. South Drive was undeveloped at the time of the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1871, consisting of open fields south-east of Wokingham town centre. Land was acquired here by the People's Investment Company (PIC) in 1898 with development beginning shortly after. The PIC was founded in 1888 primarily for the development of land in Reading and the surrounding area, with profits from developments paying a dividend to investors. The house remained largely in private ownership since its construction, though it was requisitioned by the Women's Land Army during the Second World War. In 1946 it was renamed 'Nursteed', a house name transferred with its then owner from 8 South Drive. Renovation in the 1970s resulted in the removal of some fireplaces and first floor windows and their replacement in uPVC. Some of these, particularly the front two bay windows, have since been reinstated with good quality timber reproductions. Further late 20th-century modifications include a conservatory addition to the south-west, a kitchen to the north and a detached garage to the west.

Joseph Morris was County Surveyor for Berkshire between 1871 and 1906. His son Francis, also known as Frank, served his apprenticeship with his father in 1888 before the company became Morris and Son from 1896. Joseph's daughter Violet (1878-1958) also joined the firm and was one of the first female Chartered Architects. The family designed many domestic properties in Berkshire, specifically in the Reading and Wokingham areas, and later in Somerset after Joseph and Violet moved there in the early 20th century. The firm was also responsible for a number of police stations including the one in Wokingham of 1903, and churches including the Gothic style Church of the Ark of the Covenant, Upper Clapton, Hackney (1893-96, Grade II). Frank's style was rooted in the Arts & Crafts Movement. He was involved with a number of collaborative projects as part of the family firm, but another design attributed specifically to him is the nearby house at 23 Murdoch Road (1900). After the partnership dissolved in 1905, Frank, who still had a house in Wokingham, set up chambers in London where he prematurely died of typhoid in 1908.