38 40 AND 42, HIGH STREET

Nos. 38, 40, and 42 on High Street are three terraced houses that have been converted into shops. They date from the early 19th century and have undergone later additions and alterations, including mid-19th century shop fronts on the ground floor. The buildings are finished in stucco over brick, featuring a concealed roof and brick party-wall stacks with oversailing courses.

The exterior consists of three storeys with nine first-floor windows, three for each house. The first floor has 6/6 sash windows where original, with the windows on the left house being taller and all having sills. The second floor features 3/3 sash windows with sills, all set in plain reveals. The ground floor shop fronts project outward and are set on plinths; the two on the right are panelled. They include glazed shop windows with slender mullions, and to the right, there is a frieze with oval glazing. The continuous frieze and dentil cornice are present, with the two right shop fronts retaining corbel brackets. The frieze on the right is inscribed and gilded with the lettering, '"By appointment" to HRH THE PRINCE OF WALES'.

The entrances include two shop fronts on the left that angle inward to glazed doors, while on the right there are off-centre left double glazed doors with lower panels and a divided overlight, and at the far right, a six-panelled door with an overlight. The rear of the buildings retains 6/6 sash windows.

Inside, the original joinery is preserved, including panelled shutters, staircases, and plaster cornicing. This terrace is part of a notable group of mid-19th century shop fronts, including Nos. 44 and 46, and it contributes to the visual setting of the listed buildings along London Road, which is one of the main approach roads to Cheltenham.