Site Event/Activity record ECH4905 - Monk House, Winwick, Warrington: Heritage Assessment

This assessment relates to Monk House, a small former farmhouse sited on Parkside Road in the historic township of Winwick, which now lies within the borough of Warrington. Although not a statutory listed building, Monk House is considered to be of local architectural or historic interest and consequently is included upon the list of such buildings compiled by Warrington Borough Council. It is therefore considered, in current planning terminology, a designated heritage asset. Monk House is however disused and in a semi-derelict condition, and proposals are being submitted to Warrington Borough Council for its demolition and construction of a replacement dwelling. In compliance with current planning guidance, this assessment intends to inform and guide the planning process by providing an understanding of the significance of Monk House as a heritage asset. The building comprises a small double-depth house of two bays and two storeys, built probably between 1720 and 1745: map evidence indicates it existed by the latter year. Added to the rear is a three-bay single-storey wing, probably with a service function, which was built in stages: the first bay by 1839 and the remainder by 1891. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Monk House was a tenanted farm within the extensive estates of the Legh family of Lyme, barons of adjoining Newton-in-Makerfield. Monk House is a good example of a small farmhouse built under influence from the classical style, which is reflected in its symmetrical façade and double-depth plan. However extensive unsympathetic modernisation, probably during the 1970s, stripped out most of its original detail, rendering the building of local rather than regional or national significance. This significance lies in several areas: architecturally, as an example of its type; historically, for its documentation from 1745; and in setting and group value for its relationship with the adjoining large farm of Woodhead, also of 18th century date. However the semi-derelict condition of Monk House impacts greatly upon its significance, and this, combined with the fact that it is a building of local importance only, may lead the planning process to determine that demolition is acceptable. Should this be the case, it is recommended that a formal record of Monk House is obtained before development commences.