Llewellyns Almshouses With Gate And Walls

Llewellyns Almshouses, located on Priest Row in Wells, were founded in 1614 and largely rebuilt between 1887 and 1901 to designs by Charles Brown. The buildings are constructed of local red and grey stone with Doulting ashlar stone dressings, and have a Welsh slate roof with coped gables and brick chimney stacks.

The almshouses consist of two ranges set at right angles to each other, linked by a screen wall with a gate, forming a small courtyard. The south-facing range (numbers 8-16) and the north-facing range (numbers 1-5) are prominent. Numbers 1-5 include a smaller pair of cottages (numbers 6 and 7) attached to the inner end. The street elevation features end gables, each with a single window on each level. These windows are 3-light chamfer mullioned, with a square label below and a 2-light window above. Lean-to additions extend from the rear of each block. The south range has an extra single-light window at a mezzanine level, and the north range accommodates 5 houses with two additional houses, while the two odd houses on the east of the north range may incorporate 17th-century fabric. Each house is two stories and one bay, featuring transomd casement windows in chamfered stone surrounds. The lower windows are offset to accommodate entrances, which have boarded doors set in chamfered 4-centre arches with pitched slate roof porches on brackets. The smaller cottages (numbers 6 and 7) are constructed with random rubble and ashlar dressings, a shallow pitched slate roof, and a central brick chimney stack, each having 2-light chamfer mullioned windows.

The ranges are linked on the west by a wall varying from 1.5 to 2 meters in height, with semicircular headed niches at the midpoint of each length of wall. The entrance has a stepped coped gable framing wrought-iron gates within a 4-centred arch, above which is inscribed “Llewellyns Almshouses founded 1614 rebuilt 1887”, with a shield above. A continuation of the boundary wall extends northwards from the north range, featuring a 4-centre arched gateway and boarded gate. A similar wall extends southwards from the south range with two gates. These walls, part of the overall design of the 1887 buildings, contribute to the setting and streetscape. The interior of the almshouses was not inspected during the listing process.