SNN111898 - Slaters Lodge, Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire: Historic Building Recording

In April 2019 Cotswold Archaeology was commissioned by Sursham Tompkins, on behalf of Eagerrefine, to undertake a Historic Building Recording in relation to two buildings at Slaters Lodge, Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire. Planning permission (ref 17/01177/FUL) has been granted for the demolition of the over yard barns and the conversion of two agricultural stone buildings for office and residential use. The original formal courtyard plan comprised a yard enclosed on all sides by three separate blocks of buildings in addition to the farmhouse to the south-east. The original farmstead plan was typical of those constructed within the East Midlands during the early to mid-19th century. The configuration of the farmyard was changed in the 20th century when a number of buildings were demolished or altered and over yard barns introduced. As such, the two agricultural buildings are the only surviving components of the mid-19th century farm complex. Both buildings are of some historic and aesthetic value as a result of their contribution to the understanding of the development of the farm. Building 1 comprises a threshing and a hay barn with a loose-box range attached to its southern extent. This building appears to have been modified, contributing further to its historic interest. Two double-width cart entrances in the northern bay were blocked up most probably in in the late 19th or early 20th century, which suggests that the initial intended use of the building for threshing ceased relatively shortly after its construction, probably through a shift in focus to cattle farming over arable. Building 2 appears to have been multi-purpose, impressions within the walls indicate there were partitions separating parts of the building for different functions and there was an upper storey for crop or hay storage. Neither buildings are considered to be a rare survival, as most examples of their type tend to date from the 19th century.