20A Chamberlain Street

This is a dwelling, one half of a larger house; the other half is 22 Chamberlain Street, which is designated a building of particularly important architectural merit. The house has medieval origins, with significant alterations made later, including a new facade and internal refurbishment likely in the 18th century. Further alterations were carried out in the early 21st century.

The building is constructed from stone rubble and brick, and is rendered and colour-washed, with the exception of the single-storey rear range. The roofs are covered in triple-roll clay tiles and slate. A brick chimneystack is located to the far right of the front of the house, and there are two brick ridge stacks to the rear range, which have been rebuilt.

The house has an L-shaped plan, originally part of a larger L-shaped property. It consists of a front range of three bays and a long, rectangular range to the rear.

The building is two storeys high with attics; the rear range is one and a half storeys high. The main (south) elevation fronts onto the street and features a plinth, a moulded cornice and a plain parapet, which continue onto 22 Chamberlain Street. A six-panel door is positioned to the left-of-centre, set within a panelled recess with a timber architrave. The windows are twelve-pane sash windows with exposed boxes and architrave surrounds. There are two small dormer windows. The rear elevations have replacement windows and doors dating from the early 21st century.

The entrance door opens onto an L-shaped room created in 2004 by removing a partition wall in the front range. An early 21st-century open-well staircase has been added to the rear of the room. Several historic fittings have been preserved on the ground floor of the rear range, formerly the service wing. These include a large segmental-arched fireplace with ashlar jambs and lintel, and a chamfered ceiling beam with run-out stops (in the dining room), and a further fireplace in the current kitchen. One of the front bedrooms has a fireplace with a simple flat-arched surround and a hob grate dating from the early 18th century. The roof to the front range retains pegged principal rafters and threaded purlins.

The large garden plot to the rear, which was sub-divided in 2004 with number 22, is bounded by random stone rubble walls of varying heights and dates. The most intact length of walling forms the eastern boundary and likely dates to the 18th century. It is coped and stands approximately 2.5m high.