The Old Rectory

The Old Rectory is a house that was originally built as a rectory in 1855/6 by Edward Browning for Reverend Pretyman. It is constructed from squared coursed limestone and features Collyweston slate roofs. The building has a complex double-depth plan and stands two storeys tall. The entrance front consists of a five-window range, with gables that project forward on both the left and right sides.

To the right of the entrance is a two-storey gabled porch that includes an arch-headed door with a moulded stone surround, and above it is a stone mullion oriel window. To the left of the porch, there is a large square-headed stone mullion stair window with tracery. Other windows throughout the building have stone mullions, with some featuring hood moulds that have carved label stops. The gables have ashlar parapets, and the ashlar stacks at the ridge and ends are linked by arches.

On the right elevation, there is a square bay window with stone mullions to the left and a gable to the right that features a lateral stack. The garden front at the rear of the entrance front has irregularly spaced gables on both sides and a canted bay window with stone mullions to the left. A two-storey gabled building attached to the far right of the garden front was likely intended for parish facilities but now forms part of the house.

Inside, the entrance hall features a staircase around an open well with a Gothic style balustrade, and some doors have Gothic panelling. In the 19th century, Reverend Lucas Collis hosted literary figures such as Anthony Trollope and George Eliot, who are said to have done some of their writing here.