[2] A statue of Sir Isaac Newton by the sculptor, William Theed, was erected in front of the school in 1858 and therefore pre-dates the guildhall.

[2] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with nine bays facing onto St Peter's Hill; the central section of three bays, which slightly projected forward, featured three arched openings separated by Corinthian order columns on the ground floor, a prominent oriel window on the first floor and a large lantern with a clock above.

[2] During the Second World War parts of Grantham were badly damaged by bombing and the guildhall was protected by sandbags and blastwalls.

[7][8] The guildhall was the meeting place of Grantham Borough Council until 1974 when the enlarged South Kesteven District Council was formed and the guildhall ceased to be the local seat of government; after a period of disuse it was converted into an arts centre, to a design by Tim Benton, in 1991.

[10] A blue plaque was unveiled on the wall of the old prison building in 2014 to commemorate the life of Edith Smith, the first woman police officer in the United Kingdom with full power of arrest.