Unstead Park House

Unstead Park House, now a nursing home, was built by Mr. Parry around 1780 and was originally called Farley Hill. The house is constructed of dun-coloured gault brick with stone dressings and features low-pitched hipped slate roofs. It has two storeys with an attic in a pediment and stone-coped parapets that partly obscure the roof. There is a string course above the ground floor and a plinth below. The rear of the building has three storeys over a basement.

The main block has three bays, with a central bay that projects slightly and features a lunette in the tympanum. On the first floor, there is one 12-pane glazing bar sash window in each outer bay and three sash windows in the centre, all under gauged brick heads. The ground floor outer bays have Venetian windows with Adam style fan decoration above the centre light and festoon-carved entablatures over the side lights. The window mullions are adorned with acanthus leaf capitals.

In the centre, there are simple 12-pane glazing bar sash windows flanking paved three-quarter glazed doors that are topped with a traceried fanlight and a dentilled pediment supported by attached half-columns and dosserets. The spandrels feature 19th-century decoration. A flight of five steps leads to the main doors, with square newel posts and balustrades on either side.

To the left, there is a 19th-century wing that is set back, featuring a pedimented centre break and a roundel window. This wing has plate glass sashes with gauged brick heads. The rear of the house has five bays with 12-pane glazing bar sash windows and a central square portico. Inside, there are contemporary chimney pieces and doors. The house was occupied by Lord John Russell during his time out of office in Peel's Ministry from 1841 to 1846.