Avenue House was built in Victorian times as the home of ink magnate Henry Charles Stephens, also the local MP. It is now an event venue with ten acres of grounds managed by a local charity as Stephens House and Gardens. The former stable block contains a cafe and a small museum dedicated to the Stephens Ink company.
The basement, which includes a well, was originally used as staff quarters and as a kithcen. During WWII part of the basement of Avenue House was used as the local ARP headquarters and an air-raid shelter. The basement’s ceiling was reinforced with steel girders and an escape tunnel was dug to provide an emergency exit in the grounds should the need arise.