Ice-House, Hay Lodge, Old Town, Peebles

A substantial 2-storey school and accompanying lodge, designed by Robert Wilson in 1900, with later additions in 1965 and major refurbishment in 1973. The school is an 11-bay gabled L-plan building with a 2-storey lodge at the south corner of the site, featuring occasional Queen Anne detailing and a square domed cupola bellcote. The lodge sits at the south-west corner.

The buildings are constructed from squared and snecked bull-faced sandstone with polished ashlar dressings, roll-moulded arrises, and deeply chamfered cills. Window openings have chamfered arrises and ashlar mullions.

School Building

The school has regular fenestration throughout, with first-floor windows set hard under the eaves. A later single-storey flat-roofed link on the north-west connects to a further single-storey L-plan block.

The south-west (entrance) elevation is the most elaborate, with 11 symmetrical bays and a deep base course. A slightly projecting 3-bay gable at the centre carries bipartite central windows beneath an arched cornice with the date "1900" carved beneath. Either side, 3 bays are grouped together, each with bipartite ground-floor windows. At first-floor level, these central groupings have bipartite windows breaking the eaves with open segmental pedimented dormerheads—the left containing a thistle, the right a rose. The outer bays have open pedimented windows at ground level.

The south-east elevation comprises a pair of irregular 3-bay gables to the left with a further set-back gable to the right; a later single-storey 2-bay gabled block fills the re-entrant angle. The left gable has 3 windows grouped to the right at ground and first floors. The centre gable has steps to a door at the left with a Gibbsian surround and cornice; 2 windows to the right and a louvred basement opening are also present. At first floor, a large tripartite stair window sits above the door with a window to the right; a keystoned oculus occupies the gablehead. The set-back gable has a window to the left at first-floor level.

The north-east elevation shows a 6-bay central block with a projecting 3-bay gable to the right and a blank range set back to the left containing a long box dormer. A single-storey modern block sits in the re-entrant angle with 2 small windows and a projecting entrance. The central block has 2 first-floor windows at its centre breaking the eaves with a tall segmental-headed dormerhead with finialled skewputts; the right bay has steps to a door at ground level.

The north-west elevation has a pair of irregular 3-bay gables to the right with a further 2 bays to the left. The right gable has 3 windows grouped to the left at ground and first floors. The left gable is largely obscured by a later single-storey link block at ground level; at first floor, a large tripartite stair window sits to the right with a window to the left, and a keystoned oculus occupies the gablehead.

Windows throughout are timber sash and case with multi-pane glazing. The roof is covered in grey slates with ashlar coped eaves and skewputts; an attic with glazed roof provides studio space.

Interior

The interior was not inspected as of 1994. A former full-height top-lit central hall with open trussed roof and galleries around three sides was floored over during the 1973 refurbishment.

Janitor's House

A 2-storey lodge building occupies the south corner of the site with its own detailing. The west (road) elevation is a single-bay gable with bipartite windows to both floors; the first-floor window has an arched cornice above it. Pedestal and ball finials mark the corners. To the right, a single-storey dry-dash extension contains a bipartite window.

The north (entrance) elevation is 3 bays wide, with a later gabled timber porch at the centre containing a window to the front and a door to the right return. Above this sits an original open pediment supporting a small bipartite window set hard under the eaves. Windows at ground level occupy the right and left positions, the left being narrower.

The east elevation is gabled with large and small windows at ground level and a centre window at first floor.

The south elevation is blank except for a central wall stack and a ground-level extension.

The lodge has been updated with uPVC windows; ashlar coped skews and skewputts; grey slates; and a corniced stack with ashlar dressings.

Boundary Features

A low boundary wall with saddleback ashlar coping runs along the perimeter with modern iron railings. Octagonal gatepiers with chamfered tops mark entrances. Piend-roofed single-storey open shelters with cast-iron columns stand against playground walls to the north-west and south-east.