St Andrews Well

St Andrews Well is a structure featuring two enclosed wellheads located in a courtyard with an arched entrance. It has medieval origins and was restored in the late 18th century, again around 1870, and repaired in 1978. The well is constructed from squared and coursed red sandstone with Ham stone quoins and coping on the facade, while the remainder is made of blue lias random rubble with pantiled coping.

The plan includes an arched entrance on the north front, which is flanked on the south front by enclosed cisterns linked by a wall that encloses a roughly square courtyard. The north arched facade displays the coat of arms of Sir Peregine Hood, who built it, while the rear arch features the coat of arms of the Egmont family. The cisterns have segmental heads and are housed in vaulted, pantiled rectangular enclosures, with the south front and returns lit by single glazed 20th-century openings.

The western cistern has a moulded plinth and a stone trough for water, while the slightly larger eastern cistern has two outlets and a stone trough, with water flowing continuously into a gully that drains away in the south-east corner. A ramped down wall about 2 meters high forms the courtyard. These springs are reputed to have never run dry and were believed to have healing properties in the Middle Ages. The enclosure with its arched entrance is an unusual and attractive feature.