Children's Centre, 23 South Fort Street, Edinburgh

1870 with early 20th century addition. Near-symmetrical 2-storey 3-bay single pile school of villa form with large hall to rear and later single storey residential wing to S.

Polished cream sandstone ashlar (addition stugged with polished dressings); dry-dashed to sides and rear. Base course; long and short rusticated quoins; moulded eaves; raised and blocked margins and mullions. 1st floor windows with lintels at eaves level.

W (FRONT) ELEVATION: centre bay of original 3-bay building advanced and pedimented; clasping pilasters, channelled at ground, to both floors; each floor filled by tripartite window, round-headed (as arcade) with keystones and band course at ground. Flanking bays with bipartite window at ground to left, as above, and segmental-headed roll-moulded doorway with keystone to right; deep-set door and plate glass fanlight; bipartite windows to 1st floor. Single storey 3-bay advanced piend-roofed addition to right; door with plate glass fanlight at centre, bipartite window to left, slightly advanced bay to right with canted window. Corniced doorway giving access to rear of property to left.

S ELEVATION: to left, projecting single storey range at ground with single window; blank above. Plain 2-storey 5-bay hall to rear, now divided, with further single storey range beyond.

E (REAR) ELEVATION: blank gable of hall, with single storey range at ground.

N ELEVATION: blank to right with later covered walkway and entrance at ground. Hall to left (see above).

Plate glass timber sash and case windows (meeting rails aligned with margin blocks). Piended roof; grey slates; corniced ashlar stack.

WALLS AND RAILINGS: low stugged ashlar front wall with saddleback coping and finialled cast-iron railings and gates. Tall boundary wall to sides and rear with semi-circular coping.