Penns in the Rocks is a Grade II* listed building in the Wealden local planning authority area, England. First listed on 26 November 1953. A Post-Medieval House.

Penns in the Rocks

WRENN ID
rooted-pinnacle-starling
Grade
II*
Local Planning Authority
Wealden
Constituency
Sussex Weald MP: Ms Nusrat Ghani (Con)
Country
England
Date first listed
26 November 1953
Type
House
Period
Post-Medieval
Address
Penns in the Rocks, Withyham
OS grid reference
TQ 520 346
Coordinates
51.09061, 0.17038
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

Penns-in-the-Rocks is a Grade II* listed house located in Withyham, Groombridge. The core of the house was built around 1700 by William Penn of Pennsylvania and his wife Guilelma Springett, as part of her estate. The main front, facing south, was constructed by William Penn IV around 1737. The building has two storeys and an attic, featuring seven windows and four dormers. It is made of red brick with a tiled roof. The windows are framed with architrave surrounds and keystones, and they retain their glazing bars. The central section, which has five window bays, projects slightly, while the flanking sections, originally one storey, were raised in 1830. Each section has long and short stone quoins. The entrance features a rusticated stone doorway with a keystone and a door made of six fielded panels. The north front, which serves as the entrance, dates back to 1700, while the projecting wings that create a half-H shape were added by Stephen Beeching in 1830.

Local climate

Penns in the Rocks receives an average of 760 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 67% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 57% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 30 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 65% of listed buildings. Of these, 14 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  1. Temple by Lady Dorothy Wellesley (Duchess of Wellington) in the Garden of Penns in the Rocks Grade II 127 m
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  5. Leyswood Grade II 824 m
  6. Park Cottage Grade II 836 m
  7. Leyswood Lodge Grade II 871 m
  8. Motts Farmhouse Grade II 1.0 km
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