52/5, 52/6 Spylaw Bank Road, Edinburgh

A J Balfour Paul designed these Grade A listed almshouses in 1899. They are arranged in a U-plan around a central courtyard, executed in Scots Renaissance style with painted render and red sandstone dressings.

The main elevations display elaborate architectural detail. The central entrance features ornate over-door carving and is accessed via a raised balustraded pavement with steps to a central lawn. Twin pavilions with single arches, pilastered piers, string courses, roll-moulded entablature, and leaded ogee roofs terminate this approach. Turrets occupy the re-entrant angles—a round example to the left with a weather vane and a semi-octagonal version to the right. Both carry timber boarded doors with circular lights and roll-moulded architraves. The left turret lintel is inscribed "PAX INTRANTIBUS" and the right "SALUS EXEUNTIBUS". Advanced finialled gabled entrances lead to the wings, with pedimented dormers to the first floor. Ridge stacks with red clay cans and graded grey slate with terracotta ridge tiles cover the roof.

The courtyard elevations feature a slightly advanced 3-bay centre. Half-glazed, 2-leaf timber panelled doors with leaded lights sit between flanking Ionic pilasters supporting a deep cornice. Above these rises a large segmental-pedimented tablet with flanking scrolls bearing an inscription. Tall windows break the eaves with shaped finialled gables to the bays flanking the door. Slightly recessed flanking bays contain timber boarded doors in roll-moulded, key-blocked architraves with triangular pediments. Long crowstepped gabled wings advance to each side, each with two advanced coped gables containing two doors at ground and paired windows at first-floor level.

The northern (rear) elevation displays regular fenestration across a 4-bay crowstepped central block with a 2-leaf half-glazed timber panelled door with finialled pediment to the centre and two timber boarded doors to outer bays. Slightly lower 2-bay flanking sections have central pedimented windows at ground level, probably former doors. Advanced 2-bay crowstepped gables project from the outer left and right corners.

The east and west elevations feature irregularly fenestrated wings with scullery outshots and timber boarded back doors. Sections to the north have crowstepped gabled outshots. Slightly lower sections to the south contain central swept-roof outshots flanked by pedimented dormers and large 2-window shaped slate-hung dormers. Lean-to single-bay outshots back against the garden wall at the outer southern bays.

Windows throughout comprise 6-, 8-, and 12-pane timber sash and case designs. Ashlar coped skews and skewputts finish the gables. Stacks are rendered with sandstone cornicing and tall red clay cans. Cast-iron rainwater goods feature decorative hoppers, and decorative cast-iron lamps stand by some front doors. Band courses run to the entrance gables, with an eaves course and raised window margins throughout.

A square-plan rendered brick garden building stands to the north-west of the site, with a finialled pavilion roof and leaded casements.

The boundary consists of squared, snecked sandstone rubble walling with ashlar coping around the entire site. The main entrance features a raised and recessed section flanked by rusticated red sandstone ashlar gatepiers with corniced caps. Timber side gates lead to the garden, flanked by ball finials and a decorative bracket facing the main building.

A tiered double-basin birdbath or fountain occupies the centre of the courtyard, set on a baluster base with a carved central pillar supporting the upper basin, which has projecting runnels for water to fall from. A badly corroded stone statue of a female figure crowns the centre.

Interior access was not possible in 2003.