Preparatory Department, George Heriot's School, Lauriston Place, Edinburgh

The Preparatory Department of George Heriot's School, located on Lauriston Place in Edinburgh, was designed by Reid and Forbes and completed in 1933. This building features a symmetrical, piend-roofed, 19-bay Art Deco and Neo-classical style, consisting of a single storey on the south side, a lower single storey wing to the west, and a three-storey piend-roofed technology block to the north. It is constructed of cream sandstone, with ashlar on the south side and snecked rubble with ashlar dressings on the sides and rear. The building includes a base course, a cill course at the first floor on the south side and at the third floor on the sides and rear, a cornice, and a parapet with loopholes. Long and short quoins are present, along with moulded surrounds and projecting cills on the windows.

On the south elevation, the three outer bays are slightly advanced, featuring buckle quoins and a loop-holed parapet. There are shallow pediments adorned with the Heriot star and acroteria, as well as decorative moulded surrounds and bracketed cills on the central windows. The slightly advanced centre bay contains a two-leaf timber panelled door with an arched fanlight set in a key-consoled chamfered round-arched surround, flanked by fluted Doric columns. Above, the raised parapet displays the Heriot arms flanked by obelisks.

The north wing, which serves as the technology block, is three storeys high and has seven bays facing the Vennel and three bays on the north and east sides. It features regular fenestration, with a two-leaf timber panelled door at the centre of the Vennel elevation, surrounded by decorative timber moulding and a fanlight with three circular panes in a moulded surround topped with a bracketed cornice. The windows in the centre bay on the first floor (west and north elevations) are set in recessed pedimented moulded surrounds. Relieving arches are present above the door and the ground and first floor windows in the penultimate bays on either side.

The building has 15-pane glazing in its timber sash and case windows and is roofed with graded grey slates. Grey painted downpipes are fitted with dated hoppers marked with "GR 1933."