The Elms, Broomieknowe, Lasswade

The Elms is a mid-19th century schoolhouse, with later additions, situated in Lasswade. The original building is a symmetrical, two-storey, three-bay structure designed in a plain classical style, distinguished by its crowstepped gables. The exterior is primarily of stugged cream ashlar sandstone, with the central bay projecting and built of grey stugged sandstone. Raised, droved ashlar margins define the windows, and horizontal detailing is provided by a base course, a band course between the ground and first floors, eaves course, a cornice, and a blocking course to the central bay, along with strip quoins.

The north-east (principal) elevation features a slightly advanced consoled and corniced doorpiece, incorporating a timber panelled door, a two-light fanlight, and a window with an apron above. Single windows are positioned at each floor in the flanking bays.

The south-west (rear) elevation displays a blank gable wall with a gablehead stack, a first-floor window, and a single-storey projection to the south-west with a single window. A substantial, two-storey, three-bay addition is located to the right, featuring a part-glazed door with a letterbox fanlight, full-height three-light mullioned windows in the bay to the left, a non-aligned ground-floor window in the bay to the right, and a consoled cornice beneath an advanced, two-light mullioned first-floor window. A three-quarter height lean-to conservatory is attached to the outer right.

The south-east (side) elevation exhibits a two-storey, two-bay section belonging to the original structure, with a blinded window at first floor in the left bay and a window in the right bay, topped by a crowstepped gable and gablehead stack. A further two-storey, single-bay addition, with a single-storey projection set back to the south-west, is also present, with windows at each floor in the left bay of the two-storey block and a window and part-glazed door in the projection.

The north-west (side) elevation presents a two-bay original block to the right, with a blinded first-floor window in the left bay and a first-floor window in the right bay, and a crowstepped gable with a gablehead stack above. A recessed, two-bay central block features a first-floor window in each bay. A modern conservatory extends across the ground floor of all four bays. A blank, advanced gabled wall is located to the left, and a three-quarter height lean-to conservatory is attached to the ground floor.

The original section on the north-east elevation has 12-pane timber sash and case windows, while the sides and rear feature 2- and 4-pane timber sash and case windows. The roof is covered in grey slate, with slate also used for the additions, along with ashlar coped skews, ashlar coped stacks, and cast-iron rainwater goods.

An outbuilding, a snecked and stugged sandstone rectangular-plan garage with a rendered lean-to addition, is situated to the north-west, featuring wide boarded doors with a small flanking window and a piended grey slate roof.

Gatepiers are constructed of square-plan, chamfered sandstone ashlar with a stepped and blocked cope, and wooden replacement gates are present. Sandstone rubble boundary walls with a shaped rubble cope complete the site.