The Rectory

An 18th-century rectory with earlier origins, 19th-century additions, and 20th-century refurbishment, built of brick with rendering, hung tile to sections of the exterior, and a tile roof. The building comprises two parallel ranges with an intersecting crosswing, both of two storeys, and a single-storey wing to the west, forming an L-shaped footprint overall. The plan of the main part is based on a central hall from which the main and service ground floor rooms open. A similar arrangement pertains on the first and second floors, with bedrooms opening from a main corridor.

The front elevation, which at first glance appears to be the side, presents a rendered gable end and tile-hung section. Stone steps lead to a pedimented doorcase with narrow pilasters. The six-panelled door has a rectangular fanlight above. The most prominent feature is a red brick chimneystack; there are four chimneys in total—one to the rear and two to the west side. Two ground floor and three upper floor sash windows appear on this elevation. The rear (south) elevation illustrates the double pile, with one side tile-hung to first floor level and the other red brick with an end stack. Sash windows appear to the first floor and a small gable window. At ground floor level are a bay window with French door and tiled canopy, and a second French door. The rendered east elevation presents a largely symmetrical garden front and has been restored; it features three windows at ground floor and first floor, the central one blind, concealing what is a two-bay house behind.

The earliest part of the house comprises the present-day kitchen and hall, situated at the middle front. A cellar lies beneath the hall, accessed from the kitchen, where lathe and plaster of the original kitchen wall can be seen. A beaten earth floor was discovered beneath the kitchen tiles, indicative of medieval origins for this part of the building, which probably formed the original rectory. In the 18th century, a symmetrical wing was added to the east side, now the study and drawing room. These rooms retain refurbished 18th-century fixtures and fittings including six-panelled doors, fireplace surrounds, moulded cornices, and dado rails. Behind the blind window, a timber post was found supporting the first floor beam which divided the two bays. This section was modernised in the early 19th century, when a dining room was added to the rear of the kitchen. The closed-string dog-leg staircase has a turned newel post, plain balusters, and a hardwood handrail. The first and second floors were also modernised in this period, with plainer 19th-century moulded cornices and two fireplaces of 19th-century date on the first floor.

The single-storey room on the west side has the appearance of an agricultural building incorporated into the house. Its timber frame roof has a wall plate, tie beams with raking struts, collar beams with clasped purlins, and common rafters exposed. A fireplace has been created at the east end. A pathway observed during renovation work near the fireplace shows that this was once outside the original building. The utility room at the end is probably a 19th-century addition, with exposed timber studding of the external west wall of the former farm building. The roof structure of the main part is similar, with tie beams with raking struts, collar beams with clasped purlins, and common rafters.

On the north side stands a stable with a coach house on its east side and stabling on the west. The stable retains wooden panelling of the stalls, a lathe and plaster ceiling, and a set brick floor. Impressions of coach wheels are still visible in the brick of the forecourt. On the west side of the garden is a former stable block, now used as store rooms, evident on the 1874 map as part of the complex. Both are included in the current listing.

The house is now partly 18th century with later alterations and extensions. Archaeological evidence suggests the rectory was built on the site of an earlier, smaller dwelling. The first phase was a small building occupying the area of the later kitchen and perhaps part of the existing hall, confirmed when a beaten earth floor of an earlier building was discovered beneath kitchen tiles. The second phase consisted of an 18th-century enlargement covering half the ground floor. The third phase was a 19th-century refurbishment of the 18th-century ground floor and the two upper floors. At some time in the late 19th century, an outbuilding at the extreme west end was incorporated into the building. The Old Rectory was sold by the Church in 1958.