Victorian kit bungalow and parish rectory on protected list
A VERY RARE Victorian kit bungalow has been listed by planners.
Wayside Bungalow stands opposite the German Underground Hospital on La Vassalerie, St Andrew’s.
While it might look relatively modern, it is believed the building was actually built between 1850 and 1896.
‘It is very rare and innovatory in Guernsey in its construction in particular,’ the notice states.
‘[It is] the only known example of this type from this date.
‘As a Victorian lightweight kit bungalow it is an example of a stylistic development in Guernsey and is an early example of its type and a structural development introducing new building methods to the island.’
While there have been minor alterations, the building is largely unchanged.
‘The style, proportion, ornamentation and plan form are simple, as expected in a frugally-built Victorian cottage, but the construction is expressed in external detail such as the rafter ends and detail of the cladding,’ the notice states.
The house had been owned by the Browning family for about 70 years.
Current owner Philip Browning said the house was built in 1896 as the home for a baron’s gardener.
Since then it has been rented out to the Luce family and a Mr de Mouilpied.
During the Occupation it was used by the German forces while the nearby underground hospital was built.
‘I suppose if there is nothing else like it in the Channel Islands, then it shows that it has really stood the test of time,’ Mr Browning said.
Another building to be listed in the latest announcement was St Sampson’s Rectory, which stands on Les Grandes Maisons Road.
‘An early 20th-century building, constructed in the Edwardian style which survives in close to its pre-WWII form and is of significant definite high quality and character,’ the notice states.
‘Ornamentation is characteristically decorative but understated and is evident in the many surviving features, which include stained glass, fireplaces and joinery.’
The structure of the building is largely unchanged.
However, the windows have been updated.
‘Replacement PVCu windows and doors have negatively affected the architectural interest of the building and, to a lesser degree, the historic interest, but on the whole alterations have not substantially compromised the overall special interest,’ the notice states.
‘Few buildings of this style remain and few of this age survive in such an unaltered state.
‘It remains in its early use as the parish rectory.’
