Female Cell Block, former Her Majesty's Prison Northallerton

Prison wing originally designed for women, opened 1852.

MATERIALS: original build is in thicker, browny-red brick, generally laid in English bond. Sandstone sills and lintels. Welsh slate roof.

PLAN: axial central well originally open to the roof with galleried walkways serving the cells to the sides of the building. Staircases to the west end.

EXTERIOR: three storeys of eight regular bays with nearly square cell windows. The east gable wall has three centrally positioned windows to the first, second and attic storeys, with an inserted doorway to the ground floor. The original entrance to the wing is via the Link Building attached to the east gable (Northallerton Prison Quadrangle, NHLE List entry 1418378).

INTERIOR: relatively little altered, retaining its original complement of cells accessed via sandstone slab gallery walkways supported on cast iron brackets and columns with cast iron staircases linking the levels. The simple iron railings are thought to be original. The natural lighting of the central well is now largely obscured by an inserted lift shaft and fire escape staircase at the east end, these C20 additions not being of special interest. The well has also been floored over at attic level, the attic (still retaining exposed roof trusses) being subdivided with stud partitions into offices, the modern subdivisions not being of special interest*.

• Pursuant to s.1(5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that these aforementioned features are not of special architectural or historic interest.