Bedales Memorial Library, Lupton Hall And Corridor

STEEP CHURCH ROAD SU 72 NW 9/48 Bedales: Memorial Library, Lupton Hall and corridor (formerly listed as 'Bedales New Hall and 16.3.54 Memorial Library') I A hall/theatre of 1911 and library of 1922 by Ernest Gimson, forming an L-shaped block (designed as buildings, with unbuilt gymnasium and laboratories, round a quadrangle), and an open corridor linking the hall to the main school block. The hall exterior has walls of handmade local bricks in English bond, with plain open- ings: the end gables have kneelers and large circular openings, there is a semi- circular (staircase) projection. The roof of plain tiles has four triangular ventilating gablets just below the ridge, and glazed gables at each side of the building. Regular fenestration of small windows, and a doorway under a hood adjoining the staircase. The west gable is masked below the circular window by a narthex, which has three semi-circular windows; to its south side is attached an open corridor protecting a flight of steps and then turning at right-angles to con- tinue to the main block, with a central carriage opening. Interior: there are 6 bays separated by prominent roof trusses, with king posts, collars, arch braces, and crucks resting on short brick piers. The library has similar details, with its two long elevations of Elizabethan style, showing a two-storeyed range with a deep parapet, lintel weathered bands, triple lights and two full-height bays (one of greater projection having the staircase within): there is a projecting porch with a gable above an arched doorway, approached by a flight of steps. Interior: the feature of the building is the barn-like timber frame of seven bays, with two- storeyed aisles: the massive framework includes King posts, arch braces to tie- beams and wall-plates, and wide floorboards. The furnishings are contemporary. The corridor has a tile roof, supported on trusses (reflecting the idiom of the buildings) with crucks on tie-beams, with verticals (arched on the inside) resting on a brick wall. The wider spacing of the through roadway is capped by a taller hipped roof.

Listing NGR: SU7464025294