Old Bell Cottage Old Bell Cottages

Old Bell Cottage and No 2 Old Bell Cottages are formerly a public house, The Bell, and now two cottages. The building dates from the late medieval period, originally consisting of a timber-framed hall with cross-wings. Significant alterations and additions occurred in the 18th century, including brick cladding and a 20th-century forward extension at the east side, and 20th-century outshots at the rear. Most walls are of painted brickwork, with exposed timber framing visible on the west wall, filled with brick. The roof is tiled, with a catslide at the rear and a hip to the rear of the west cross-wing. The building has an irregular layout with a recessed middle section of one storey and attic, and two-storeyed wings with gables facing the road. The windows are casements. Doorways are plain. Late 20th-century alterations include a replaced shopfront (at No 1) and a blocked doorway (at No 2). The interior reveals the building’s early origins, including the insertion of an upper floor into the former central hall.