Description

SEVENOAKS KIPPINGTON ROAD
TQ 55 SW
4/151 Churchill Court including
Terrace walls
GV II

Former large house now College of Insurance. Original house of c.1900 by Thomas
Potter, called 'Craigmore', completely remodelled and extended with an L wing in
the 1920's. In the firm of Imrie and Angell in a Kentish Vernacular style.
Entrance or east front has red brick ground floor and 1st floor timber-framed
with plaster infill, the end 2 bays tile hung, with steeply pitched tiled roof
with 6 Tudor style brick chimney-stacks. 2 storeys and attics; 8 windows.
4 dormers; I gabled the others hipped. Windows are mainly mullioned windows
with leaded lights and hand made iron latches. The principal feature is a large
off-central gable with vine decoration and pendant. Framing has close-studding
and diagonal tension tracer but the horizontal members are staggered to make a
pleasing pattern. 4-centred arched stone door case with roses in spandrel. To
the right are 2 recessed bays with arched supports. Lead rain-water heads.
L-wing, which incorporates central entrance for cars has brick ground floor and
tile hung 1st floor. 5 mullioned windows and 3 hipped dormers. Rear of L wing
has ground floor mainly plastered and 1st floor tile hung with 6 mullioned win-
dows and a massive 2-storey bay with pattern of triangular tiling. Garden or
west front has ground floor plastered on brick plinth and 1st floor tile hung.
The right-hand part has a projecting gable on wooden supports and bay on ground
floor. 3 mullioned windows to left, with central projecting 2-storey bay and
recesses either side like a Wealden house. To the left is the projecting ori-
ginal house which has 5 windows in all including a central overhanging gable on
brackets. To the extreme left is a 1-storey open verandah glazed in to form an
additional Dining Room in the late C20 with 4 circular wooden piers. Attached
at the end left is a brick range containing a court with semi-circular wall in
Sussex band. Attached to the house is a red brick terrace with terracotta semi-
circular inserts and stone coping with adjoining stone steps and stone terrace
walling. Brick fountain underneath verandah. Interior comprises: Staircase
Hall with large oak well staircase with turned balusters and square fielded
panelled newels. Dado panelling. Splay to landing. Half-landing has 2 steps
leading to a recess which has 3 Jacobean style round-headed arches with tall
finials on each side. Large 6 x 3 mullioned window with pegged oak frames and
iron hinges. lst floor has 2 Tudor arched door surrounds to 12-panelled doors
and 2 further Tudor arches to corridors. Plastered ceiling with ceiling rose
with rose design, rose and vine frieze and floral motif cornice. Ground floor
has stone fireplace with Tudor arch with cable moulding to sides. 6 oak door
cases with cornices; pilasters and 12 panels. Vestibule has double doors with
leaded lights and cocks head hinges. Dining Room probably original comprised
2 rooms. Right hand side has ceiling of Elizabethan type with 3 axial beams and
floor joists, all chamfered with run out steps. The left hand side has tall
panelling in Georgian style with coved cornice and 2 semi-circular china cup-
boards with keystone, pilasters and serpentine shelves. Door has 4 horizontal
panels. Ground floor corridor has oak cupboard with semicircular arch with key-
stone, roses in the spandrels and diamond-patterned oak panels. Wide oak
floorboards. Churchill Room has a ceiling with 9 heavy roll-moulded panels and
a large oak fire surround with double pilasters each side and cornice with
tetraglyphs and paterae with 4-centred arched stone fireplace with rectangular
panel with herringbone moulding and 2 round-headed niches. Cellar has staircase
with stick balusters and large vine cellar. 1st floor room has curved ceiling
with plastered grape decoration. The servants staircase is probably one of the
only remaining features of the c.1900 house with turned newels and balusters.
At the end of the Second World War the owner of the time, Mr Charles Hopkins,
presented the house to Winston Churchill in appreciation of his services to the
nation. He presented the property to the British Legion who used it as a conva-
lescent home for its members for many years and renamed it Churchill Court.
Between 1903 and 1946 the house was known as Kippington Court.

Listing NGR: TQ5204654631

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26620875

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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