The Lexden and Winstree Union Workhouse was erected in 1836, designed by Scott and Moffatt following an unusual variation of Sampson Kempthorne’s cruciform (or cross-in-square) plan. The workhouse hds a central octagonal hub of three-and-a-half storeys from which four accommodation wings project. These are enclosed by single-storey outbuildings which create an octagonal plan. The buildings are of red brick with slate roofs. After 1930 it became St Albrights Hospital, which closed in 1991. In later years it was occupied by Essex County Council Social Services, before closure in 2006.

An unusually complete early 19th century workhouse with few external modifications. The 1998 survey recorded that the site retained all the key components, and its spatial form demonstrates how the paupers were both accommodated, segregated and supervised.<1>

The two-storey administration block (1) lies at the north end of the octagonal range. It has slightly more architectural detail than the rest of the workhouse, with a first-floor painted stone sill band and a central porch with Tuscan columns beneath a shallow pedimental parapet. All the single-storey outbuildings (2) survive except parts of those to the east; the 1930’s Public Assistance Committee Report shows that the these were used as stables, a wood and cart shed (now demolished), receiving wards and the laundry. The latter (5), standing on the west side, was rebuilt c.1900 (RCHME, 1994); it is lit by sash and hopper windows, and contains a large occulus under the gable at either end. The slate roof carries ridge ventilators.
The central hub (3) is of three storeys plus an attic and would have contained accommodation for the master; its octagonal plan permitting maximum supervision of the paupers in the four yards. From the hub, four three-storey wings project (4); the first bays of which are recessed to allow more light into the hub. Many of the original vertical sash windows in both the wings and outbuildings have been replaced.

The infirmary was initially a two-storey rectangular block (6); this subsequently became the nurses home (Public Assistance Committee, 1930). In the 1880’s two-storey ward blocks were added to either side and these may have been linked by an open covered way or veranda on the north side; such a design being characteristic of pavilion planning introduced in the 1870’s. Further ward blocks, which wrapped around the southern ends, were probably erected c.1900.

Lying to the south of the infirmary, the chapel (7) is of unknown date. It is single-storey, of red brick with stained black bands and stone dressings; the building is gabled to the east and west with a slate roof. Brick pilasters divide double lancet windows which contain lead glazing. The doorway is set under a pointed arch at the west end and the interior has a canted wooden ceiling.

The original mortuary, to the east of the workhouse, has been demolished. It was replaced in the twentieth century by a single-storey brown brick building (8), lit by two pointed windows to the east and west with gablets rising above eaves level. There is a doorway with a Tudor-arched head on the west side, and three ventilation slits under the north and south gable ends.

A number of buildings depicted on the 1876 and 1896 Ordnance Survey map (9 and 10) have been demolished.<1><2>

A programme of RCHME Level 3 historic building recording was undertaken by Essex County Council Field Archaeology Unit (ECC FAU) in February 2011, prior to conversion to residential use and the redevelopment of the surrounding site.<3>