Heathcote House

Heathcote House, dating from the early to mid-18th century with later additions, is a substantial two-storey building with an attic and basement. The main facade is constructed of red brick laid on a projecting plinth with a stone capping. The corners are emphasised by chamfered stone quoins, and a moulded stone eaves cornice runs along the top. The roof is hipped and covered with stone tiles, with sections re-roofed in double Roman tiles. There are two hipped roof dormers, each containing a small sash window. The facade has a symmetrical arrangement of windows: two paired windows and a central single window to the first floor, and two paired windows plus a central door on the ground floor. All windows are sash windows with intact glazing bars, set in moulded stone surrounds; those on the ground floor have additional moulded cornices. To the right is a recessed bay with a single window on each floor. The front door is recessed and consists of six fielded panels within a moulded stone surround, framed by plain stone, and is sheltered by a flat stone hood with carved stone brackets and a stone vase above. To the left, there is a three-light stone framed and mullioned basement window. The rear southwest elevation, dating from the late 18th century (specifically 1786, according to an interior beam), has a brick dentil eaves cornice and two dormers. It features five irregularly spaced recessed sash windows with intact glazing bars and a glazed front door. The interior was altered in the 19th century, although some original features remain, including quarter-fielded panelling in the front rooms, a staircase with a flight of turned balusters and a swept handrail, and a bay window in the early 19th century dining room, which now opens onto a conservatory. This conservatory incorporates a very deep, lead-lined cistern, likely connected to the original house’s plumbing.