Newton Primary School (2 blocks)

Cadw's description

Location

Situated E of Porthcawl centre and harbour, W of Newton village, on the main road linking the two, by junction of the sea road to Sandy Bay.

History

Architect D Pugh Jones. The successor to the school in Newton village built in 1848. 1902 Education Act abolished School Boards and placed schools under control of the County or Borough Council; this Council Junior School opened in 1907 and consisted of 2 classrooms and a main hall, with 2 new classrooms added in 1908 and separate Infants Department in 1915. Accommodation for 250 pupils.

Exterior

School consists of 2 separate blocks, formerly juniors to left and infants to right. Both buildings of red brick with blue brick patterning, also diapering in two shades of red, ashlar and some yellow brick dressings, Welsh slate roof with terracotta ridge tiles, mouldings and pots to tall chimneys. Each block is assymetrical in its arrangement of doors, windows, gables, chimneys and outshuts. Original block to left consists of two parallel gabled wings and attached rectangular wing to rear. Main frontage facing road has central gabled bay which breaks forward with 3 stepped long multipane windows, decorative corniced surround to heads, imposts with circle motif and ashlar bands to corner piers, pediment with inscription panel 'Porthcawl County School' and stepped coping, ventilation louvres above, moulded stone sills and brick aprons. Original entrance to side right inscribed 'Girls and Infants' within pediment has segmental arched doorway with keystone and decorative spandrels, banded pilasters with circle motif to imposts. Similar original boys entrance side left. Elaborate roof ventilator to main ridge with 2 bay arcade to each side, louvred pediment and copper roof. All windows are tall, multipane fixed glazing with pull-down opening lights; sills, lintels, some surrounds, decorative bands of ashlar; brick patterning is diamond shaped in blue brick, diapering in red; yellow and blue brick window surrounds to rear.

Separate building to right consists of centre schoolroom range and gabled schoolroom cross wings left and right. Entrance left inscribed 'Domestic Science and Handicraft' with pediment incorporating shield above and eared architrave, recessed door with overlight; side door to cross gable right is the original Infants Entrance; gable end has a plaque inscribed 'Porthcawl Infants School 19 Dawn Dydd 15 Yw y Borel'; bell below. Windows are multipane sashes with deep and wide chamfered lintels, blue brick voussoirs with heavy keystones at front; cast iron downpipes with some decorative hoppers.

Rockfaced stone roadside wall with moulded brick coping, brick and stone gatepiers octagonal caps, replaced railings.

Interior

Plan and detail mainly unaltered. Titled or planked dados and blocked tiled fireplaces; quarry tiled or woodblock floor; doors part glazed, glazed partitions; some lowered ceilings but corbels for trusses visible.

Reason for designation

Included as an early C20 school by a named architect, the careful design in Queen Anne style with patterned decoration remains largely unaltered. Now a very rare survivor of this highly-considered type of Council school.