South West Regency (Administration) Block To St Edwards Middle School

South-west Regency (Administration) Block to St Edward's Middle School, Ashley Road, Charlton Kings

A villa now converted to school use, formerly known as Ashley Villa, Ashley Manor, and The Oaklands. Built circa 1832, extended to the front and remodelled for Nathaniel Hartland, banker, to designs by C Baker of Cheltenham; builders included Robert Williams and Edward Billings. The building incorporates in its north wing part of an earlier house called The Woodlands. The villa was built at a cost of over £6,000 and is among the finest villas in the Cheltenham area.

The structure is constructed in ashlar with hipped slate roofs. The plan comprises a double-depth main range with lateral hall and stairwell to the rear, a service wing extending to a 3-storey service block with lower single-storey wings flanking it.

The entrance facade faces west and is of 2 storeys with 4 first-floor windows arranged 2:1:1, the third bay (entrance) breaking forward. Giant Tuscan pilasters mark the corners and the breakforward, with a moulded first-floor band. First-floor windows are 6/6 sashes with tooled, eared architraves. The ground floor has an off-centre right entrance with a Corinthian portico containing 2 pairs of columns, frieze and dentil cornice. Within are double 2-fielded-panel doors with side-lights and pilasters between bearing a Greek key pattern, dentil frieze, and divided overlight. Ground-floor windows are 2/2 sashes with frieze and cornice on corbels; all windows sit in plain reveals.

The garden facade is 2 storeys with 3 bays, the centre being a full-height bow with windows arranged 1:3:1. A plinth runs across with corner giant Tuscan pilasters and giant Corinthian columns flanking either side of the central window. A continuous dentil cornice and blocking course complete the composition. First-floor windows are 6/6 sashes, the outer ones with tooled, eared architraves. The ground floor has 2/2 sashes to the outer bays and 6-pane French windows to the bow; all have frieze and cornice on consoles. The bow windows feature blind boxes and louvred shutters.

The east facade contains a Gothic bay window to the ground floor with perpendicular-type tracery to its head, and an oriel window to the first floor between 6/6 sashes. A staircase window on the north elevation is a 9/9 elliptically-arched sash with margin-lights.

The interior retains many original features of exceptional quality. The wide entrance hall is divided into 3 parts: the outer part has doorways on either side with 6-panel doors and eared architraves; the inner two sections each contain saucer domes decorated with Greek key pattern and cornucopia with doves and floral bosses to the centre. A recess features arched wall panels and a coffered segmental vault. Enriched cornices throughout employ egg-and-dart, dentils and modillions.

The principal ground-floor room, now used as a chapel, has scagliola columns leading into the bow and contains marble fireplaces with frieze and cornice. A further room to the south-east contains a 2-colour marble fireplace with original grate and sideboard break flanked by Corinthian columns, and a deep frieze decorated with anthemion motifs.

An open-well stone staircase features scroll-motifs to the ends of treads and iron balusters. The upper part has blind-arched wall panels opposite arched openings with similar balustrade and a coffered segmental vault. The upper hallway displays an enriched frieze with egg-and-dart and anthemion corbels and fleurons to the frieze.

The first floor contains several marble fireplaces, including in service rooms. Main rooms, some subdivided, retain enriched cornices. A service staircase has stick balusters.

The internal plasterwork is a particularly notable feature for its diversity, depth and quality of composition. The villa forms a group with a Summerhouse and drive piers to a carriage sweep on London Road.