History

Built 1899-1900 for the Cardiff School Board by E.W.M. Corbett, architect to the Bute Estate. The contractor was W. Thomas & Co of Cardiff. Corbett modified his design for Roath Park Board School of 1894, retaining the Queen-Anne style favoured by School Boards during the period, but adding an assembly hall.

Exterior

Queen-Anne style single-storey school of red St Julian brick and Hartham Park Bath stone dressings, slate roof behind coped gables on moulded kneelers, 4 panelled brick ridge stacks and 2 eaves stacks to the front elevation. Of double-depth plan, it comprises a classroom block facing Pentyrch Street, behind which is an assembly hall with classrooms, cloak rooms and offices. The roofs are hipped to the rear facing the central valley. The 5-bay front has an advanced central bay and outer gabled bays that project further forward with Flemish gables. Windows are replaced in original openings and have a plain sill band with vents beneath each window. The central bay has 3 stepped windows, with corbelled pilasters between them, and further pilasters carried on the keyed lintels. These are carried up to a blank entablature with scrolled sides and the cornice of the gable pediment, which has obelisk and ball finials at the ends. The pediment has 2 vents. The 3-window bays R and L of centre have stepped windows. The central window is framed by pilasters on guttae, which are carried up to a blank entablature above the eaves, with scrolled sides and crowned by a segmental pediment. The outer bays have stacks rising from the eaves to the inner sides. The gable ends have 3 stepped windows, with corbelled pilasters between them, and further pilasters carried on the keyed lintels. On each side these are carried up to a blank entablature with scrolled sides and the cornice of the gable pediment, which has obelisk and ball finials at the ends. The pediments each have 2 vents. The outer side walls have 2 windows offset towards the rear.

Set back at each end are entrances to the main corridors in the wider rear block. Both have replaced doors, an entablature with 'Infants' engraved below a cornice, and are framed by corbelled pilasters. Above the S doorway is the cloak room parapet. The N doorway projects slightly forward. The N end wall facing Whitchurch Road has a scroll-stepped verge below a pedimented gable. In the lower storey are 7 narrow small-pane cloak room windows, above which are 2 groups of triple windows framed by corbelled pilasters, blank aprons, entablature and moulded cornice. Set back further R are 2 lower-storey windows.

The rear of the block has a central 5-window hall flanked by 3-window advanced gabled bays. Each has tall segmental-headed windows, 3-light to the hall, 3-light flanked by 2-light to the gabled bays. A further, 2-storey, gabled bay is on the L side and houses offices. It has 5 windows in the lower storey, with concrete steps to a boiler room below, and 2 windows in the upper storey flanking a central corbelled flue, reduced below the eaves.

At the R-hand (S) end is a lower cloak room wing with 4 small-pane windows, and a brick parapet with stone coping over a moulded cornice. Its S end wall has 8 similar small-pane windows with sill band, and a continuous freestone lintel.

Interior

Corridors from the main N and S doorways lead to the classrooms and the assembly hall. The hall has a single fireplace with wooden surround. The interior retains scribed plaster walls, panelled doors incorporating glazed panels, and glazed panels between corridor and classrooms.

Reasons for Listing

Listed, notwithstanding recent replacement of windows, as an integral component of a prominent and rare Board School retaining original character and with Cathays Library providing historic integrity to the Cathays townscape.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29502754

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.

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