Lloyds Bank And Bank House

Lloyds Bank and Bank House is an office building dating from 1921, located on the west side of High Street, Tewkesbury. It is a large building constructed with timber framing set within plaster panels, brickwork, and a tile or slate roof. The design features a prominent ground-floor banking hall, with a side passage on the right, above which are two jettied floors of offices or domestic accommodation, displaying three gables to the street.

The building is three storeys high, with a three-window facade. Small, two-light oriels are positioned under the jettied gables on brackets, and larger, three-light oriels with transoms are situated at the first floor, also on curved brackets. The ground floor, set on a high ashlar plinth, has a full-width window with fine oak joinery, featuring a 3:5:3 light arrangement with four-centred heads and a transom. A panelled door with side-lights, bearing a panel inscribed 'Tewkesbury Branch', is located on the left, while a similar door, beneath a two-pane transom light, provides access to the side passage on the right. Two plaster panels are positioned under the upper oriels, dated 1765 (left) and 1921 (right). The return gable on the left is tile hung, and two tall brick 'Tudor' ridge chimney stacks are present. The brickwork on the right-hand wall, beyond the passageway, incorporates two large mullioned and transommed casements, which illuminate the banking hall. All casements are fitted with small-scale leading. The rear is plain rendered, and the rear roof slope is slated.

The interior of the ground floor comprises a large, high banking hall without intermediate supports, featuring a lobby inset on the left. The ceiling is divided into a series of nine large, square compartments, with a central octagonal dome containing small-scale geometrical glazing. The other compartments are sub-divided by moulded beams into four smaller panels. Bay divisions and wall panelling are constructed from high-quality polished oak, with flat four-centred heads and spandrels. The front windows are set within deep splayed embayments with panelled reveals. The original 1921 main counter remains, although a late 20th-century glazed safety screen has been installed, causing no damage to the original structure.

Although faced with timber framing, the building is on a larger scale than the traditional buildings of the 16th and 17th centuries, clearly indicating its later origin. It is an assured and uncompromising design, playing a prominent part in the street scene and demonstrating a high standard of craftsmanship both internally and externally.