Victoria House

Victoria House is a house and adjoining workshop, dating from the mid-to-late 19th century, though incorporating elements of an earlier structure known as Church House (according to deeds). The house is built of stone rubble with a slate roof; the house roof is half-hipped at the right end, and it has two rear lateral stacks, one of stone and the other of handmade brick. It faces into the north-east corner of the churchyard and stands end-on to the village street. The house has a single-depth plan with two rooms wide, a central entrance, and a straight-run staircase facing the front door. Visible pre-19th century features are limited to the positions and materials of the rear lateral stacks, now partially enclosed by a lean-to, and a datestone of 1730 bearing the initials “WGA” on the front elevation.

The large, rectangular workshop adjoins the house at the front left (south-west) and projects into the churchyard. It is said to have historically functioned as a wheelwright's workshop and appears to have been used for semi-industrial purposes.

The two-storey house presents a symmetrical three-bay front. The central entrance has a C19 plank door with a glazed rectangular overlight. To the right of the centre of the front wall is a 1730 datestone with initials. Timber casements with glazing bars are found in the ground floor on either side of the front door, and three in the first floor. The right return of the house, facing the village street, is symmetrical with brick dressings around the openings. A C19 panelled front door (possibly a former shop door) is centrally positioned, flanked by late C19 two-pane sashes, with a similar four-pane sash above in the centre. The workshop has a twelve-pane fixed window on its south side and three windows on its west end. Internal evidence suggests a larger doorway on the east end, where the workshop projects forward.

Inside the house, the right-hand room contains a boxed-in crossbeam. The roof was not inspected during the 1987 survey. The building was previously thatched in 1960, but the thatch was laid over an earlier slate roof. It is likely that this was originally Church House, lending it historical significance, with possible 16th or 17th century features that were not evident during the original survey. The building is an important feature of the church setting and provides visual variety to the village street.