Ashprington House

Ashprington House is a house dating to approximately 1780, that was reduced in size around the mid-20th century. It is constructed of rendered stone rubble with rusticated quoins and has a low-pitched roof covered with asbestos slate, characterised by deep eaves. The original design included rendered axial stacks.

The original plan was a double-depth format with two relatively small principal front rooms and a wide central entrance hall leading to a large stairwell at the rear. There were also two deep back rooms, projecting beyond the stairwell. Initially, the house comprised three storeys, encompassing both the front and the rear left-hand section. In the mid-20th century, the house was reduced to two storeys. The rear left-hand room was raised to two storeys, and the rear range was demolished, resulting in a more regular, approximately square block.

Originally, the house possessed three storeys, including a basement and attic. The front elevation presents a symmetrical three-bay design. The windows are 12-pane sashes, with the first-floor centre window being the only original from the 19th century. A central doorway has side lights and a rectangular overlight with radial glazing bars and fielded panel double doors. The portico, which features columns and an entablature, is a replacement of the original, with glazed sides and front, and stands on marble steps. Contemporary, segmented-roofed dormers with 9-pane sashes have been added. A three-bay return on the right-hand side features a three-sash bow window with carved sashes; a similar bow is present on the left-hand return, but with 20th-century replacement carved sashes and tripartite sashes to the left. The rear elevation is distinguished by eaves carried over a central recess, incorporating a tall, square-headed stair window with glazing bars.

Inside, the left-hand room features a moulded plaster cornice and ceiling border with Vitruvian scroll decoration, alongside a mid-19th century white marble fireplace with a bracketed marble shelf. The right-hand room has a modillion cornice and a 20th-century, Adam-style fireplace. Original 18th-century fielded panel doors remain. The entrance hall is characterised by a cyma moulded cornice and a large elliptical arch leading to the stairhall, incorporating a fielded panel intrados. The mahogany handrail ramps up to turned column newels, and the open string has scrolled tread ends. Photographs documenting the house’s appearance prior to the mid-20th century alterations are in the owner's possession.