Brackley’s Lord of the Manor, the Earl of Bridgewater, was becoming very unpopular in the town due to his lack of engagement with the town’s businesses. The town turned to Lord Crewe of nearby Steane and Hinton, who was Speaker of the House of Commons for help. Lord Crewe, a Puritan who had supported Parliament in the Civil War, answered the town’s calls and in 1633, Crewe founded Brackley’s Almshouses. They were originally six one-storey houses with attic dormers for occupation by six poor women. They were later converted into apartments and offered to both men and younger women. Their role in housing the poor was in some respects, continuing the work of the original Hospital of St. James and St. John.

The Plaque on the building reads: ‘These Almshouses were endowed in 1633 by the will of Sir Thomas Crewe, Speaker of the House of Commons. Converted into flats in 1969.’