183 High Street (High Street News) has been awarded a THI grant to repair the exterior of the property and to reinstate a traditional shopfront.
During the course of the repair works a previous shop sign and decorative paintwork was uncovered. This sign will be retained behind the new shopfront signage, preserving this feature into the future.
Removal of the modern render on the wall immediately adjacent to 185 High Street shows us that 185 – 189 High Street (former Cross Keys Inn) pre-dates 183 High Street. We can tell this because a doorway lintel of 183 High Street is resting upon what appears to be the original gable of 185 – 189 High Street.
This suggests that 185 – 189 High Street could originally have been a single storey building and that 183 High Street was built on top of its gable.
A traditional shopfront has been installed and the building as a whole has been transformed by the works.