History

Home farm complex constructed as part of a large programme of rebuilding on the Pool Park estate commencing in 1826. The work was undertaken for the second Lord Bagot of Blithfield, Staffordshire, and included the rebuilding of the house to designs by the architect John Buckler, possibly in collaboration with Benjamin Gummow. The plan incorporated barn, hayloft and byre sections, together with, at the NE corner, an L-shaped farmhouse section, now modernised. In addition the southern corner, formerly completing the courtyard square, has been demolished in recent years and a modern agricultural range now partly occupies this space.

Exterior

Quadrangular farm complex. Of rubble construction with squared limestone dressings and some remaining limewash; slate roofs with oversailing eaves and deep verges. The plan is essentially square with the ranges built around a central courtyard, though one arm of the domestic section projects to the NE together with a parallel block, the two advanced to flank the main courtyard entrance. One-and-a-half storey entrance ranges with single-storey subsidiary ranges adjoining. The opposing entrances are in the form of cross-gabled gateways flanked by projecting piers. The entrances are full-height with slated bargeboards; the gables also are slate-hung, with the exception of the outer face of the main entrance, which is timber framed with wooden latticing; its inner face has a square boarded opening and it has a C20 wooden slatted half-gate. The opposing entrance is similar and has a barn range to its L with 3 tiers of ventilation slits to its outer wall and 2 tiers to its inner; this has lost its final bay to the L, which is now occupied by the end bay of a modern agricultural building. On the other side of the gateway is a bricked-up outer entrance (to the L) and a narrow open light under the eaves diagonally above.

Linking the 2 entrance ranges is a single-storey byre block, with central wooden louvre; slatted vents and corrugated iron roof. In each corner, where this block joins the entrance ranges, is a segmentally-arched entrance with dressed limestone voussoirs and three-quarter boarded door (the segmental upper section of the opening thereby forming a vent). The byre range itself has 3 wide, similar entrances, symmetrically placed and with windows in between; these have C20 steel-framed glazing. Opposite this range is a similar block, adjoining the main entrance range (which incorporates part of the farmhouse) to the L. It has 2 similar entrances and 3 windows; its final bay (which formerly included the third entrance) has been demolished.

The L-shaped farmhouse is of one-and-a-half storeys and is rendered and whitened; its eastern arm forms the courtyard range to the L of the main entrance as one enters. It has large modern painted casements to the courtyard side, 2 of which are in original arched openings; there are 2 modern dormer windows to the roof, one flat and one gabled. In front of the house section is a low modern wall with plain horizontal railings. The outward-facing side (to the NE) has similar modern windows to the ground floor. The NE wing, advanced in front of the main entrance, has its gable end facing the approach lane. This has plain bargeboards and deep verges; cambered windows to the ground and upper floors, with early C20 2- and 3-part casements; projecting stone sills. Gabled porch to the NW (main entrance) side and a further, modern porch extruded in the outer angle between the 2 wings. The angle between the main courtyard gateway and the advanced house section also has a further extruded (single-storey) lean-to.

The advanced range opposite the farmhouse is a south-western continuation of the courtyard complex. The left-hand part is a cobbled area open to the front and sheltered by the block's continuous roof above. Within this is a stone stair giving access to a first-floor entrance in the gateway section; limestone steps and contemporary plain iron handrail, the original boarded door with simple triangular overlight-vent. Adjacent to the stair is an extruded cupboard placed between it and the curved end wall of the main part of the block to the R; this has a narrow panelled door and the convex curved wall adjacent has a boarded stable entrance. To the R of this is a modern ground-floor window with a boarded loading bay above. The latter breaks the eaves and is contained within a small gable with deep verges. Stepped-down and partly overlapping this section is a single-storey rectangular block with boarded and vented door to the L; to the R is an unglazed window opening.

Interior

The rear gateway has an open roof structure, whilst that opposite (the main entrance) has a lath-and-plastered ceiling. Tall open loading bays to either side of the former, with pegged frames; similar to the latter, though that to the L is blocked-up. 2-bay sections to either side, with bolted king post trusses. The lower byre ranges are of 7 and 5 bays respectively, with trusses as before. The farmhouse interior was not inspected at the time of survey.

Reasons for Listing

Listed for its special interest as a well preserved example of a quadrangular estate farm complex of the 1820s.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29498557

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1968)
• 
  Herefordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides): Written by Charles O'Brien, 2014 Edition, Publisher: Yale University Press [Hardcover]
• 
  Gloucestershire 1: The Cotswolds: Cotswolds Pt. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)