3, Cross Street

This is a house, now a shop with living accommodation, dating from the early to mid 17th century, with a rear section likely from the 18th or 19th century. The walls are probably brick, although may originally have been timber-framed, and are rendered. They have slated roofs, with a hipped section towards Cross Street. Old red brick chimneys are visible on the left side wall and rear gable.

The original layout of the front section remains largely intact on the second floor, comprising two rooms (now combined), with a stair compartment to the right of the smaller back room. The rear section has a single-room plan.

The front section is three storeys high, while the rear section is two storeys. The Cross Street façade has a shop front of high quality, from the early 20th century, extending to Paige's Lane. This features display windows with curved corners and leaded transom lights, panelled pilasters, and a console at the right-hand end. The second floor of the Cross Street front has a low, six-light window from the early 20th century. The third-floor windows have moulded architraves and sash windows with margin panes.

The Paige’s Lane front has three windows with moulded architraves on the second floor. A single, early or mid 17th century wooden window of three lights is located on the left (north) end of the third floor. This window has ovolo-moulded mullions, with an upright bar dividing the lights, except for the central light, which has an old iron casement.

At the rear, fronting Paige’s Lane, the ground floor has a central door with two moulded panels below and a glazed panel above, an eight-pane sash window to the right, and a three-pane fixed sash window to the left, protected by an ornate iron grille. The second floor has a plank loading door to the left and a sash window with margin panes to the right.

The interior ground and second floors have been extensively altered; the ground floor ceiling has been raised. Surviving features include ceiling joists and beams supporting the second floor, old roof trusses and purlins. Doorways leading from the second-floor landing to the front and back rooms have chamfered wooden frames with scroll-stops. Original plank doors, with wrought-iron strap hinges featuring fleur-de-lys terminals (the front door having partly restored hollow-moulded ribs), remain in place. A 19th-century staircase is present, likely originally dog-leg in style. A cupboard with a 17th-century panelled door is located in the side wall above the staircase. Fireplaces and windows potentially of interest may be concealed behind plaster.