Ffald y Brenin Christian Retreat Centre

This long range, dating from the 18th century and later, has been converted into a Christian retreat centre. It sits on a sloping site and includes a round chapel at its northern end, separated from the main building by a covered passage. The original walls of the farm building are of rubble stone, and have been repaired and selectively heightened using unquarried stones, creating an undulating roof line. The roof is slate, with skylights and three cairn-like stacks constructed from field stones. Sloping sections join the different roof levels to avoid abrupt changes in height. The chapel has a conical roof. Openings are arched with brick, though most windows and doors have trapezoidal heads. Wooden casement windows have slate sills.

On the east side, six windows of varying sizes are positioned to the right of an added porch, which is in a faceted outshut style. To the left of the porch, the wall is partially slate-hung, and two ventilation strips from the original farm building remain on either side of a half-glazed door. Three dormers have sloping courses at the apex to soften the angles. The west side, facing the former farmyard, features two half-glazed doors and nine casement windows of varying sizes, one of which is within a blocked former doorway. A wide ‘eyebrow’ dormer and a smaller attic window are also present under the eaves. External stone steps wrap around the southwest angle, leading to a balcony with elevated views over the Gwaun Valley and a half-glazed door to the attic storey.

The chapel, to the north, has triple round-headed windows (effectively forming its liturgical east end), and two windows on each of the west and east sides. A solid wood door in the passage on the south side has curved strap hinges, likely reused.

Internally, partitions create sub-divided spaces, deliberately plastered with a roughly textured, whitewashed finish to soften surfaces and angles. Three original doors retain trapezoidal heads and thumb latches carved with a trumpet and harp motif; the remaining doors have been replaced to meet fire-safety regulations. The building is arranged with a lodge at the downhill end, guest accommodation, and the chapel. A diagonal passage on the ground floor breaks up the rectangular units, which contain guest rooms and bathroom facilities. A diagonal closed-string stair leads to the attic floor, housing communal rooms and additional guest rooms. A communal room incorporates a fireplace with a rounded field stone surround. The chapel’s interior is similarly plastered and features a shallow-domed, whitewashed ceiling. It contains benches around the sides and a large altar-like rock outcrop rising from the irregular flagstone floor.