Barrow Court

Barrow Court is a country house, now divided into several residences. It originated as a Benedictine nunnery, which was converted for residential use around 1538. The main structure was rebuilt around 1545 and subsequently altered and extended in approximately 1602 and again in 1882. The house is constructed of squared and coursed rubble with freestone dressings. It has slate roofs on the main block and pantiles on the subsidiary ranges, along with ashlar stacks.

The house comprises an E-shaped central block dating to around 1545, a roughly L-shaped range added around 1602 to the west, and a further 17th-century range to the northeast. It is two stories high, with attics, and presents a largely symmetrical east front. This facade features mullioned and transomed windows of 3 and 4 lights, with hoodmoulds and small leaded pane casements under flush relieving arches. The fourth bay from the right has two 6-light windows, and the attic windows are set within gables. The 17th-century range includes 2-light mullioned windows, largely renewed in 1882.

The doorcase of the porch, which projects centrally, is distinguished by Ionic pilasters with masks, a segmental pediment open and broken by a cartouche and two reclining figures. A moulded Tudor arch leads to the porch, and a 19th-century plank and batten door opens to the inner doorway. A 5-light canted oriel is incorporated into the west range. The house features ball finials on gable ends, tall ashlar stacks, and a central open cupola with a fish-scale base and a conical lead cap.

The interior underwent extensive restoration and renewal in 1882, but several early 17th-century features remain. These include a panelled Parlour off the Great Hall, which has a rich arabesque patterned ceiling and decorative frieze; a grand Jacobean staircase with a fine plaster ceiling displaying a mixture of Gothic and Renaissance motifs, with a central pendant and intricate cusped rib patterning. A similar plaster ribbed ceiling is found in the Great Chamber or Solar above the Great Hall, alongside a contemporary chimney piece and overmantel. A second, smaller, staircase connects to the Long Gallery. The Ilex Room contains a chimney and overmantel supported by figures of Justice and Mercy. The Great Hall was remodelled in 1882, but sections of the Screens Passage may retain elements from the early 17th century. A notable late 19th-century interior is the Chapel above the porch, featuring contemporary woodwork and Kempe glass.