Hatch Court

Hatch Court is a country house dating back to around 1755, designed by Thomas Prowse for John Collins. It underwent significant redecoration between approximately 1820 and 1830, with service areas expanded and an orangery added. Further renovations occurred between 1925 and 1935, including the insertion of dormers into the attic. The house is constructed of ashlar bath stone, featuring a moulded cornice, string course, and plinth. It has slate roofs hidden behind a balustrade, with pyramid roofs over corner towers and ashlar stacks.

The plan is of a double pile design with corner towers, curving wings to the rear, an orangery extending the west front, and a service block to the north, adjoined by former stables. The main house is three stories to the towers, with a two-story central section and an attic. The towers have 12-pane sash windows, while the first floor windows on the main section are 9-pane and have moulded architraves. The ground floor outer bays have 12-pane windows with pedimented tops and baluster sills, while the central five bays feature a loggia accessed by a stone staircase. The front returns are symmetrical, arranged in a 1:3:1 bay pattern, with a full-height canted bay between the towers.

The west front incorporates a curved wing of the orangery, extending for five bays with a further two bays beyond. This single-story structure features semi-circular headed 5 x 4-pane sash windows linked by a continuous hoodmould to pilasters. A kitchen block is located at the rear, with a steeply pitched slate roof and a cupola, which is visible behind the orangery. Adjacent to the kitchen block is a former housekeeper’s room, now a museum, containing a Chippendale-style glazed partition.

Inside, the hall features an Ionic screen, and the T-plan staircase has a cast iron balustrade which may have been renewed in the 1930s. The first-floor landing is screened by an Ionic screen with a groined vault. The plasterwork cornices date from 1810 to 1820, and there are several good chimney pieces of the same period, particularly in the drawing room, which has elaborate Rococo plasterwork similar to that at Sandhill Park. A panelled dining room and a delightful oval library, situated at the junction between the main house and the orangery, are also present, the latter featuring curved doors. The design of Hatch Court reflects principles similar to those found at Hagley Hall, where Thomas Prowse, a gentleman architect, is known to have been consulted.