Mead House

Mead House is a house, now used as offices, dating to the mid-18th century, with alterations from the late 19th century. The front is rendered with ashlar dressings, while the sides and rear are of coursed squared limestone rubble. The roof is of stone slate with rear slopes of stone, Welsh, and artificial slates, and the left and right-end stacks have been rebuilt in artificial stone.

The house is a mid-18th century Palladian villa with a central three-bay section that projects forward, topped by a pediment. Matching 19th-century wings were added in a similar style. The main part of the house is three storeys and an attic, with a five-window main range and two-storey wings, one window wide to the left and four windows wide to the right. The main range has five six-over-six pane sashes with projecting cills on the first floor and five similar three-over-three pane sashes on the second floor. There are four six-over-six pane sashes in Gibbs surrounds on the ground floor, and a central six-panel door with a decorative overlight in a Gibbs surround. Two hipped dormers have three-over-three pane sashes. Features include a shallow plinth, rusticated quoins to the ground floor left and right angles, a band course above the ground floor, a moulded string above the first floor, a modillion cornice and pediment, and a blocking course.

The wings are in a matching style with similar windows and detailing. A six-panel door, now partly glazed with a simple overlight in a Gibbs surround, is located in the wing to the right. The moulded eaves cornice continues as a moulded string above the first floor of the main range, and there is a blocking course.

The interior features an open well staircase with a late 19th/early 20th century balustrade, potentially on original treads, with shaped cheek-pieces, three square-section moulded balusters per tread from the ground to the first floor, stick balusters above, and square-section moulded newels. An arcaded timber screen supported on square section reeded columns is above the newels to the foot of the stairs. A late 19th century timber screen with double doors is in the entrance hall. The front left room on the ground floor has a heavily carved late 19th century fireplace with a shelf supported by carved figures and a heavy enriched moulded cornice. The front far left room on the first floor has a small chimney-piece with a bolection moulded architrave and a pulvinated frieze, likely from the late 19th century. No. 18, the wing to the right, has undergone 20th-century alterations and was not inspected.