The Warminster Town Centre Conservation Area Assessment (Informative Document), published in March 2007, noted:
The most dominant building in Church Street is Warminster School, formed from Lord Weymouth and St Monica schools in 1973, when the two establishments were merged. This would explain the multiple numbers of different buildings that make up the school site, manifesting itself along each side of Church Street. The open spaces and land associated with the school, again on both sides of the street, provide playing fields and on the western side are bounded by the River Were.
Thomas Thynne, first Viscount Weymouth, who was responsible for the fine Queen Anne style building, stables and outbuildings, originally established the Lord Weymouth Grammar School in 1707. It was referred to as a grammar school as it taught Greek and Latin but this term was dropped in 1955. Since the late 1960s the school has developed and expanded, taking over other religious and educational establishments, and supplementing these with new buildings. Currently the school attracts pupils on an international basis.
The junior or Preparatory School to the Senior School, together with the Minster Church of England Junior School, are both located on the southern side of Vicarage Street, adding further to the educational institutions in this part of the town so that children’s voices can often be heard during play and recreation time.
The schools and church, when in use, are a hub of activity with pupils and worshippers going to and fro between buildings and car parks, or using the many sports pitches behind the school buildings. Warminster School does provide some living accommodation for students, but many day pupils arrive by bus and car to this and the other schools, so that at times this area can be very busy. At other times, however, especially at weekends, it has an air of tranquillity in contrast to the main commercial parts of the town.
In between the school and ecclesiastical buildings are a small number of terraced cottages and larger houses. Providing housing for staff, or privately owned, they add a different layer of visual interest to the area. Outbuildings, such as stables and malthouses are also present. Once serving the principal buildings, these buildings mainly survive in converted forms and are used for storage and workshops for the schools and larger houses.