Old Rafters

Old Rafters is a detached cottage that dates from the late 16th century, with alterations made in the 17th and 18th centuries. It features square-panelled timber-framing with brick nogging, dressed limestone, and brick on the south front, topped with a thatched roof and brick stacks. The building is designed in an L-plan and is single-storey with an attic, showcasing a one-window south front.

The south front has a glazed 20th-century door and a planked stable door set in a thatched porch supported by posts. To the right, there is a segmental-headed 20th-century casement window, and to the left, there are two 20th-century casements. An eyebrow dormer with 2-light casements is also present. The left side of the cottage features a half-glazed door in a thatched porch, with two casement windows (one 2-light and one single-light) to the left, and two eyebrow dormers with 2-light casements. The right side is windowless and shows evidence of raised eaves in the brickwork.

At the rear, there is a blocked doorway and a 3-light wooden mullioned casement in the main range. The projecting wing to the right has a segmental-headed 2-light casement and an eyebrow dormer on the east side, with the north gable made of banded chalk and brick, indicating a raised roofline.

Inside, the cottage features deeply-chamfered beams with stepped stops, an open fireplace with a cambered chamfered lintel on chamfered stone jambs, and a spice cupboard in the room to the right of the entrance. The ground floor has timber-framed partitions and planked doors, while the attics reveal roughly-cut rafters. It is possible that the cottage was originally open to the roof on the ground floor, with a first floor added when the eaves were raised in the 17th or 18th century.