St Andrew'S Lodge With Front Boundary Wall

WELLS

ST5446 THE LIBERTY 662-1/6/303 (North side) 12/11/53 No.7 St Andrew's Lodge, with front boundary wall

GV II

Former Charity School, now part of the Wells Cathedral School; linked to No.5 (qv) adjoining. School, founded 1713. Random coursed local stone rubble with Doulting ashlar dressings, Welsh slate roof with sawn stone ridge between coped gables, one brick and one stone chimney stack. Double-depth central-hall plan with transverse stair to rear right. EXTERIOR: 2 storeys, symmetrical 5 bays. 2-light stone casements with transom, with slight beading to all members, set in moulded architraves, the ground-floor windows having pediment hoods. Entrance in bay 3, with a 6-panel door and rectangular fanlight set in stone architrave over which is a semicircular pediment enclosing a carved figure of Saint Andrew. C19 lean-to and other extensions to rear, and to east gable, set back, in brick with stone dressings. INTERIOR: hall to full depth retains black and white marble slabs set diagonally; return to stair with C19 ceramic tiles. Both main rooms have late C19 fireplaces. Ground floor has 4 large, flat, chamfered and stopped ceiling beams. Stair has turned balusters to moulded and swept handrail to square newels. Small service room in outshot behind stair has broad fireplace with brick jambs and deep flush square lintel, probably reset. Fielded 6-panel doors. Fireplaces are late C19. Roof not seen. Detail is generally later than the exterior would indicate. SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: extending southwards from the south-west corner of the house, returning along front boundary and then back to south-east corner an enclosing wall in random stone with moulded ashlar copings, dropping to 1m height along front, swept up at ends. At the left-hand end is a broad ashlar pier, and opposite the main entry a low pair of square ashlar gate piers having moulded pyramidal cappings. HISTORICAL NOTE: erected by Philip Hodges, a citizen of Wells, for the school, which it remained until moved in the early C19 to Portway. After several tenancies as a private house it became briefly after 1947 a Canonical House, before being leased to the Cathedral School in 1955. (Bailey S: Canonical Houses of Wells: Gloucester: 1982-: 184; The Buildings of England: Pevsner N: North Somerset and Bristol: London: 1958-: 328).

Listing NGR: ST5506846078