Main Office, John C Small And Tidmas Limited

The Main Office of John C Small & Tidmas Ltd, formerly known as The Old Post Office, is an office building dating from approximately 1850. It originally stood within the civil parish of Chard, and now forms part of Perry Street Works. The building is constructed of red brick in English bond, with the north gable end rendered in stucco and featuring quoins. It has a slate roof with coped verges on the north gable. The building is rectangular, oriented north-south, and originally had its entrance on the north front, but now the primary entrance is on the west front, abutting a textile factory to the east.

The north gable end is two storeys high and three bays wide, featuring a moulded cornice which creates a tympanum above the gable, containing a clock within an oak leaf surround. The first floor has lugged surrounds to the sash windows, each with shaped keystones and marginal glazing bars. A moulded string course runs along the gable, with moulded lintels above the long, tripartite sash windows. A pediment, supported by shaped brackets, originally adorned the pilaster doorcase, though it is now blocked and contains a semi-circular-headed window.

The west front, with five bays, features a decorative cornice at first floor level and four segmental-headed window openings containing six-pane cast-iron windows, with pivoted central openings. An end bay has a part-glazed door giving access to a fire escape. An ashlar string course runs along the ground floor, between similar windows flanking a central 20th-century double door.

The interior is largely unremarkable, except for two rooms flanking the original entrance. The north-east room retains a ceiling rose, while the north-west room features intact plasterwork, including an exuberant cornice and centrepiece depicting cherubs, recently repainted in bright colours. A cast-iron grate with inset tiles, possibly Minton, is also present.

Built as the manager's office, the use of stucco and classical detailing distinguished it from other buildings within the complex, some of which exhibited a "Dutch flavour." A significant portion of the factory was demolished and rebuilt around 1954. The company holds photographs documenting the factory’s 19th-century operation and subsequent partial demolition. The factory historically produced lace and netting, now focusing primarily on the latter. The reason for its previous listing as ‘The Old Post Office’ is currently unknown.