Saxons Close

Saxons Close is a row of four council houses built in 1929 in Filkins and Broughton Poggs, Gloucestershire. Designed by Morley Horder in a Cotswold vernacular style, the houses are constructed from coursed rubble limestone with ashlar dressings, stone slate roofs, and stone chimneys. The long, symmetrical range features three gables facing the front and a central through-passage. Windows are stone mullioned, with two and three lights, featuring leaded glazing. The ground floor has ten windows, while the attics have two windows in each gable. The through-passage is defined by a depressed stone arch in a Tudor style, featuring moulded spandrels and a Tudor hoodmould. Centrally located houses have entrances directly from the passage, while the end houses have doorways at the gable ends, both sheltered by flat stone hoods supported on brackets. According to historical records, Saxons Close is considered the pioneering example of integrating traditional materials into council house construction. The design was influenced by Sir Stafford Cripps, a local resident who funded the additional labor and material costs associated with the traditional methods. The aim was to ensure the council houses visually and socially blended with the village's character, serving as a model for later council housing developments in Bulls Close, Filkins, as well as in Burford and Kelmscott.