Penhayes

Penhayes is a villa, currently used as a retirement home, built around 1840-1850. It is believed to have been constructed for the steward of the Powderham Estate, likely around the same time as alterations to Powderham Castle by Charles Fowler for the 10th Earl of Devon. The building is made of snecked grey limestone and features slate roofs with gabled ends, as well as stone stacks topped with tall chimney shafts grouped with brattished caps, all in a Tudor style.

The villa has a double depth main block that is approximately rectangular in shape. The north and east elevations face the garden, with the entrance located on the south side and a service wing to the north. The exterior is two storeys high, with an asymmetrical four-window south front that includes a gabled porch featuring a chamfered two-centred arched stone doorframe, an original timber door, and decorated floor tiles. To the right of the centre, there is a projecting stack with set-offs and tall paired shafts. The windows are 19th-century timber transomed casements with hoodmoulds, arranged in two and three lights.

On the east elevation, there are two projections with gabled fronts; the left projection has a canted bay topped with an ornamental slate roof and wrought iron cresting. A 20th-century door has been inserted in the centre below a large 19th-century three-light transomed stair window with a hood mould, while other windows are 19th-century two- and three-light transomed casements with hoodmoulds. The north elevation features a gabled projection on the left with a 20th-century canted bay that mimics the east side, including a French window and additional 19th-century transomed casements.

Inside, original features remain intact, including plaster cornices, joinery, marble chimneypieces, and a 19th-century main stair with chamfered stick balusters and a ramped wreathed handrail. The service wing contains a stick baluster service stair with a ramped handrail.