16 High Street, Hailsham

16 High Street in Hailsham is a shop with offices above, primarily dating from the 19th century, though it features a wall painting from the 17th century. The building is rendered, likely built from brick, with a tiled roof and brick chimneystacks.

It occupies a rectangular plot within a terrace of buildings that runs from northwest to southeast along the east side of the High Street. The structure is two storeys tall and has two bays. The main facade faces southwest onto the High Street, where a modern shop front designed in a historic style is located on the ground floor. The first floor features two tripartite sash windows with segmental arched heads and stone sills. At the rear, there are three window openings positioned halfway up the elevation.

Inside, the building is two rooms wide, with stairs and service rooms located at the back. The ground floor has been opened up but includes some modern partitioning that does not contribute to the building's special interest. On the first floor, there is a historic timber partition separating the two main rooms. Originally, this partition was four bays wide and two bays high, but a bay and a half have been truncated on the east side to create a now-blocked doorway between the rooms. The timber frame is filled with panels of lime plaster, and on the southern face, there is a historic wall painting.

In the left panel, above the mid-rail, the text reads: ‘THE PEACE OF GOD, / A QUIET LYFE, A CONTENT / MYNDE AN HONEST WYFE / A GOOD REPORT, A FRIEND IN / STORE WHAT NEEDE A MAN WISH’; it is possible that the poem continued in the now-lost right-most panel. The central two panels depict a lion and unicorn, surrounded by foliate and floral embellishments. Below the mid-rail, the painting is in poor condition, but traces of color and floral motifs can still be seen. The partition has been encased below the mid-rail and is covered by a protective screen above. The area above the partition is brick. The building's special interest is primarily found in the partition and the wall painting.