Gatehouse and attached courtyard wall at Van House

The gatehouse and attached courtyard wall form part of the Van House estate. The gatehouse is a ruined two-story structure built of rubble sandstone with limestone dressings and in-and-out quoins. It likely dates to the 16th century. The gatehouse has a shallow, battered plinth topped by a string course. The main entrance, on the downhill (western) side, originally featured a Tudor-headed arch, but most of the dressed stone frame is now missing, with only the lower parts of the jambs remaining. A string course runs above the arch, interrupted by a later inserted and now blocked window on the right side, but continuing around the remaining elevations. A small window with a dressed surround is located in the south gable end’s lower left corner, and a blocked window is positioned higher on the right side, both under relieving arches. A rebate indicates a former string course on the gable.

Attached to the plinth is a 16th-century courtyard wall constructed of rubble stone, forming two sides of a square layout. This wall is connected to the main house, with a break in between. Low walls belonging to a ruined bakehouse of uncertain date are also attached and were heavily overgrown during inspection. The courtyard-facing side of the gatehouse has an elliptical arch where the dressed stone frame is now missing. This is flanked by blocked windows beneath relieving arches, again with missing dressings. In the upper story, a two-light mullioned window with a sunk chamfer remains, set within the original window jambs. The roof trusses create gablets on the main elevations and have recently been replaced.

Early 17th-century wings were added to the north gable end of the gatehouse; these have been restored and now function as a separate dwelling. A section of the courtyard wall projects southwards from this wing, standing approximately 2.5 meters high, with a segmental-headed doorway and abutting the main house.

Inside, the north gable end contains an ornate, Tudor-headed fireplace on the first floor, with a moulded surround. Shields bearing the initials of Thomas Lewis are displayed in the spandrels, and blockwork infilling covers the remains of a former fireplace below. Blocked former doorways to ranges on the north side are located to the left of the fireplaces.