Montgomery Primary School

Cadw's description

Location

Situated some 150m NNE of church.

History

Former National School of 1864-5 by Thomas Nicholson of Hereford, High Victorian Gothic style. The school was established by the Rev Maurice Lloyd on land given by Lord Powis and cost £1100/1/10d, of which Lord Powis gave £500 and the Rev. Lloyd £100.The contractor was Mr Gough of Bishops Castle. In an old photograph there was a cupola on the ridge. An assembly room was built to the S in 1952, to designs of Herbert Carr, County Architect.

Exterior

School and former school-teacher's house, greenish squared rubble stone with flush dressings in yellow Bath stone. Roofs of small slates with crested terracotta ridge tiles. Single storey large school with teacher's house of one storey and attic attached to N. Gothic style with sash-windows in ashlar surrounds with chamfered and stopped jambs.
L-plan school has large gables to S and W with big triple sash window, each with blind pointed tympanum with bi-colour voussoirs and sunk octofoil roundel. Long windows have horizontal glazing bars. Flush ashlar band each side at impost level. Moulded string course at sill level continued all around. Pair of big raking buttresses each side on W gable; S gable is partly obscured by C20 low flat-roofed addition (the link to the assembly hall). On S side of W gable is projecting gabled porch with chamfered pointed S doorway, the hoodmould continued from main string course. To right of porch is short outshut in angle, with tall stone chimney on roof slope. Main range at right angles has W tall ashlar gable over tall two-light cross window. Quatrefoil panel in gable. To right, under eaves, are two pairs of small plate-glass sashes.
House has gabled cross-wing to left of two-bay range with roof swept low over door and narrow window in cambered headed surrounds. Door is ledged, with overlight. On roof slope is a dormer with outsized gable carried on timber jowled posts, with notching to lintel under boarded gable with bargeboards. Two-pane fixed window. Cross-wing gable has quoins, two flush bands, and cambered headed sash windows, one to loft and two below. N side wall has big external chimneybreast with tall quoined double chimney. Addition on E end gable under construction 2005.

Interior

Interior not inspected.

Reason for designation

Included as a large Victorian Gothic primary school, little altered.