H M Prison Dartmoor: A and B Wings

The H M Prison Dartmoor, consisting of A and B Wings, comprises two attached cell blocks arranged on a linear north/south axis. B Wing, designed by Sir Edmund du Cane, was constructed between 1880 and 1885, while A Wing dates from 1906-7. Later alterations in the late 20th or early 21st century have affected the internal layout.

The buildings are constructed of squared granite rubble with rock-faced granite quoins and granite ashlar dressings. The roofs have been replaced with metal sheeting and the original windows have been replaced.

The two blocks together form a long rectangular footprint, with projecting ablution wings to the west and east. Entrances are located at the north end of A Wing and in the centre of the east elevation of B Wing, both now served by late 20th-century covered walkways. A shower block, likely dating from the 1950s, is attached to the centre of the west elevation.

B Wing is sixteen bays long and built on sloping ground, resulting in a four-storey appearance, with an additional lower floor or basement to the east and south-west. A band of rock-faced granite marks the basement level on the west elevation. The small, horizontal windows are surrounded by plain ashlar, and above the upper windows is a corbel-course supporting a rounded cornice, above which a clerestory is set back. The clerestory windows are now blocked, replaced with inserted lights in the metal roof. Tall plenum towers rise centrally from each elevation, slightly battered towards the base and featuring projecting cornices on corbels.

A Wing follows the design of B Wing and is twenty bays long, with four storeys. Its windows are similar in form to those of B Wing and feature a comparable corbelled cornice. A Wing is capped with a pitched roof and inserted lights. The central ablution towers on the west and east sides rise through corbelled stages to a gabled stack, while two central plenum towers, with corbelled detailing mirroring that of B Wing, are also present.

The interior of both A and B Wings has been completely refurbished with modern fittings, though the original cell layouts have been preserved.