Stanbridge Earls

Stanbridge Earls School, (known as Stanbridge Earls) near Romsey, Hampshire is an independent school for boys and girls aged 10–19. The school owns 40 acres (160,000 m²) of land including three lakes. The main building is a Tudor manor house which now contains the reception, maths department and 13th century chapel. It is a Grade II* listed building. The school has many facilities including a sports hall, an indoor swimming pool and an accelerated learning centre.

Since the early 1960s Stanbridge Earls has been at the forefront^{[citation needed]} of teaching and helping pupils with Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dyspraxia.

The Main Building

History

King Athelwulf

The name ‘Stanbridge’ is believed to have derived from ‘Stone Bridge’ a crossing over the River Test, used as a route to a Saxon palace near Andover. One of the first references to the site was made by King Alfred’s tutor. He wrote that Alfred’s father, King Æthelwulf ‘was dead and buried at a place called Stomrugam’ in around AD 857.

Stanbridge Earls, became a Nunnery in the year 907 AD, along with Romsey Abbey. Nuns, led by Elflaeda, daughter of Edward the Elder, son of Alfred the Great, founded a community — at his direction — in what was then a small village. Later, King Edgar refounded the nunnery, circa 960 AD, as a Benedictine house under the rule of St. Ethelflaeda whose devotional acts included chanting psalms while standing naked in the cold water of the River Test.

Main House Courtyard

At some time in the 18th century, a skeleton, thought to be that of King Æthelwulf, was lifted from under the stone floor of the present chapel and reburied in Winchester Cathedral, along with bones of other Saxon Kings that are now contained in mortuary chests.

An unnamed manor, thought to be Stanbridge, is described in the Domesday Book. It was confiscated from a Saxon thane, Chief Cheping, who may have been killed at the Battle of Hastings and given to one of William the Conqueror’s most famous generals, Sir Ralph de Mortimer.

The ‘Manor of Staunbridge’ is recorded in the Book of Fees of 1244 as being owned by the Mortimer family. In 1245 it was sold in two lots and the manor was bought by Richard de Havering.

In 1362, Thomas Kenne inherited property from his parents, including Stanbridge Earls. The estate consisted of a large, rectangular, timber framed hall house, a water mill and about 26 acres (110,000 m²) of land.

By 1450, the original estate had been split into three separate estates, Stanbridge Earls, Ranvilles and Ervilles. They were purchased and reunited by John Kirkby. The estate became wealthy and the son, William, ‘married well’ and bought more land.

Mortimer Coat of Arms

The Kirkbys owned Stanbridge Earls until it was taken from them in 1652 because they had supported King Charles I during the English Civil War. By then, the estate consisted of ‘…sixteen Messuage (houses with outbuildings and land), four cottages, twenty barns, two water mills and one dove house in Stanbridge, Romsey, Roke, Michelmarsh and Awbridge and also free fishing in the River Test.’ Its new owner, Roger Gollop, was a Parliamentarian and magistrate of Southampton.

The Chapel

The estate was passed down the family until it was sold to John Fifield in 1703. An eccentric relative, John Fifield, inherited it in 1748. He refused to let any timber be felled on any of the properties and he regarded repairs to the house as useless extravagance. The building fell into disrepair, roofs collapsed, joists and beams rotted.

Fifield’s son, yet another John, set about rebuilding the house after he inherited it. His son-in-law, Charles Hall, took over the estates until he committed suicide at Stanbridge Earls in 1870. In the following year, Florence Nightingale’s father, William, bought Stanbridge. The property passed to another daughter, Lady Verney who sold it to Sir Basil Montogomery in 1895. Like previous owners, Sir Basil added new sections including two three-storey wings at either end. The house was sold to Henry Hansard in 1905. He commissioned the stained glass coats-of-arms in the present staff common room.

Charles Greenway, perhaps the most flamboyant of Stanbridge’s owners, bought Stanbridge in 1917. In 1927 he was made a Lord after he founded the Anglo-Persian Oil Company and the title Baron Greenway of Stanbridge Earls has stayed in the family. His grandson Ambrose Greenway the 4th Baron of Stanbridge Earls, is one of only 92 hereditary peers allowed to hold their seats in the House of Lords. Charles Greenway was a great host, held many banquets and parties in the house and employed nine house staff, seven gardeners and a chauffeur. The next owner added luxurious bathrooms and entertained on a grand scale but went bankrupt.

Estate, South of Main House

In 1942, during the Second World War, Stanbridge Earls became the first ‘Flak Shack’ - a rest and relaxation home for American Air Force Officers. Roke Manor served a similar function and together the bases were known as Station 503.

Entrance to Main House

In the same year, the estate was broken into lots and auctioned. Walter Hutchinson bought the house and approximately 60 acres (240,000 m²).

On Hutchinson’s death in 1950, a Mr Beisley bought ‘…the particularly desirable and extremely valuable historic residence and agricultural estate of nearly 426 acres with an attractive 17th century residence of great charm and character and beautifully situated in timbered grounds with two lodges.’

Stanbridge Earls became a school founded by a charitable trust in 1952 and opened on 15 September with eight pupils. Initially the curriculum focused on Drama, Music and the Arts.

Ethos and Curriculum

Stanbridge Earls is a small independent boarding and day school for boys and girls with a teacher to pupil ratio of around 1 to 6. It was founded for boys who had found larger boarding schools restrictive but gradually the school attracted pupils who had learning difficulties, often undetected and frequently misunderstood, and it has continued to specialise in this area with great success. Currently the school has about 185 pupils on roll, three-quarters of them boarders. It has a thriving sixth form. Although the school started to admit girls in the late 1970s about 80% of pupils are boys, reflecting the greater incidence of special needs among boys. In the late 1980s the school recruited, for the first time, pupils into Years 7 & 8. Pupils are drawn from across a wide social spectrum. Approximately sixty pupils are funded by local authorities.

Bottom Lake & Main House

The school has an enviable reputation, in line with its mission statement, for building confidence and achieving success, often with pupils who have struggled with other forms of education. Most of these pupils receive small group or individual tuition from highly qualified staff in the Accelerated Learning Centre (ALC) or the Mathematics Learning Centre (MLC). The Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) is assisted by staff specialising in occupational therapy and by speech and language therapists.

Class sizes are small, with not normally more than ten pupils. Pupils follow a mainstream Key Stage 3 curriculum in Years 7 and 8. Thereafter, they have the opportunity to select from a wider choice of subjects at GCSE and A level. Spanish is the primary modern language. In addition to the traditional subjects, pupils can select vocational subjects such as Home Economics, Fashion, Media Studies, and Motor Mechanics. Since the school has CISCO Academy certification, many pupils gain practical experience and valuable qualifications in ICT. Results in public examinations, however modest, are among the greatest rewards for staff at Stanbridge. While many sixth formers transfer to university, a significant number go to colleges of Further Education or directly into employment.

The school has close links with the Council for the Registration of Schools Teaching Dyslexic Pupils (CReSTeD), and it hosts courses for the principal of Learning Works. It belongs to the Boarding Schools Association (BSA), and the Headmaster is a member of the Society of Headmasters and Headmistresses of Independent Schools (SHMIS). In 2010 the school is launching an assistive technology programme in partnership with Kellogg College, University of Oxford.

Headmasters

Headmaster, Dick Gould, 1959 - 1984

• 1952 - 1959: Anthony Thomas

• 1959 - 1959: Arnold Jones (Acting Headmaster)

• 1959 - 1984: Richard (Dick) Gould

• 1984 - 2000: Howard Moxon

• 2000 - 2004: Nicholas Hall

• 2004 - 2005: Geoffrey (Geoff) Link (Acting Headmaster)

• 2005 - 2010: Geoffrey (Geoff) Link

• 2010 - .........: Peter Trythall

Thomas was the first Headmaster of Stanbridge from 1952 until he retired in 1959. From 1961 until the 1990s he ran the Ellen Terry Barn Theatre in Smallhythe, Kent.

North Lodge & Goulds Boarding House

Gould was a long serving Headmaster giving 25 years of leadership to the school. He lived in North Lodge with his wife, Erica and daughters, Lorraine, Jenny and Frances. He was an Anglican Lay preacher.

Link retired in August 2010. His successor is Peter Trythall, formerly employed at Bolitho School in Penzance. He is married with four children. He was educated at The King's School, Canterbury and at the University of Stirling, where he read History and Politics.

Pastoral Care and Houses

’C' House (Scoble's), Burmese Temple, 1965

The school has a multi-layered system of pastoral care.

In Years 7 & 8 pupils have their own Junior School Housemaster or Housemistress.

Upon entering the Senior School (Years 9 - 13) pupils join one of four Houses, A, B, C or D, each with its own Housemaster/mistress. In the 1950s and 1960s the houses were named after their Housemasters although this was gradually replaced by the letters A, B, C and D.

Each Housemaster/mistress has responsibility for, and organises, a team of Tutors. Tutors have between two and ten pupils in their tutor groups. Every morning Tutors meet with their tutees for registration. Regular tutor meetings are also a feature of the pastoral provision.

House Chapel, 'D' House, 1968

Housemasters/mistresses lead house meetings and the Headmaster leads assemblies for individual year groups and the entire school.

House membership is identified by a distinctive coloured tie.

• A House - Red
• B House - Light blue
• C House - Yellow
• D House - Navy blue

The Wyverns' Society

The Wyverns' Society

Former pupils or 'old boys', before the school admitted girls in the late 1970s, are members of the alumni society.

In its website the school claims that, "The Wyverns' Society is dedicated to keeping in touch with all former pupils of Stanbridge Earls School". The Wyverns' Society page of the website includes links to school photographs from 1984–2000. There are several hundred former pupils on the Wyverns' mailing list.

Throughout the year there are meetings and sports matches at the school.

A magazine, Voice, edited by staff and pupils, is produced regularly. The most recent edition of Voice was published in the summer of 2009. The magazine features school news and as well as contributions from, and news of, Wyverns.

Current & Former members of Teaching Staff at the May 2010 Reunion

Since the 1960s there have been a variety of events, some hosted at the school and others in London. 'Pub nights' in the 1960s and early 1970s attracted small, informal, London based gatherings. An annual Wyverns' Dinner in London featured for many years and in the 1980s and 1990s there were reunions called gaudies hosted at the school.

The most recent Wyverns' Dinner was held at the East India Club in St James' Square, London in 1994. Over thirty Wyverns were present. Headmaster, Howard Moxon, Deputy Headmaster, John Abraham and former member of the Common Room, John Bain attended. The guest speaker was the very popular former Headmaster, Dick Gould, who was accompanied by his wife, Erica.

The school hosted a reunion for 1960s Wyverns in September 2009, 1960s Wyverns in May 2010 and 1970s Wyverns in May 2011. Wyverns' Day was held at the school on Saturday 12 February 2011.

Mr Peter Bragg, former pupil and Head Boy (1964), is the chairman of the Wyverns' Society. Mr C F (Chris) Rowney, Housemaster of 'A' House, replaced Mr P C (Paul) Pellatt as the secretary of the Wyverns' Society.

Adventure Training

LINCS Tower, Speech Day 1970

In the 1960s Geography teacher and 'C' Housemaster, David Charlton, instigated his own brand of adventure training called LINCS. This was an acronym for Leadership, INitiative, Co-operation & Sagacity and included challenging physical and mental tasks with an emphasis on individual success, self sufficiency, perseverance and team building. Unlike many team sports, LINCS was totally inclusive and pupils, irrespective of their sporting and academic talents, participated in a wide range of activities often exceeding their own expectations.

LINCS activities were masterminded by Charlton and, later, jointly with Dr Chris Reynolds, a chemistry teacher and housemaster. A popular challenge was the 'night operation' or 'night op' where blindfolded and disorientated participants were taken from school and abandoned, in small groups, in the New Forest with the challenge of finding their way 'back to base'. Negotiating complex night time obstacle courses; zip-line descents across the Top Lake and an annual Speech Day display for parents and visitors, in which an ambitious and entertaining quasi-military scenario was played out, were all imaginative examples of the LINCS provision.

A memorable event, in 1970, was a sponsored walk of 80 miles (130 km) to raise funds for the purchase of an extended wheelbase Land Rover for LINCS activities. One pupil, David Tennant (the House Captain of 'D' House) completed the entire course.

LINCS was extended, in the late 1960s, through the rental of farmhouse called Celmi ('concealed place'), near Tywyn, in north west Wales. This was used for residential weekend and holiday activities. The remoteness of the location in the Snowdonia National Park with its stunning scenery including the nearby mountain, Cader Idris enhanced and enriched the LINCS experience. Rock climbing, abseiling, navigating disused slate mines, walking, camping and swimming were included in the repertoire of outdoor activities.

This ran in parallel with the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, Gold Level standard. Pupils taking part in LINCS had to agree not to collect their Duke of Edinburgh medals as the ethos of LINCS was to appreciate personal achievement, not public glorification.

Myths and Stories

Top Lake

The Main House is haunted by several ghosts. King Æthelwulf, who was buried in the chapel, has been sighted by many pupils. Before Stanbridge was built there was a monastery on the site. The ghost of a monk has been seen in various places. One sighting saw him walk through the chapel wall.

There is a tunnel that runs from Main House leading to The Duke's Head, a pub near the school. It has been suggested that it was created by the Kirkby's during the Civil War along with several Priest Holes to protect them from the Parliamentarians.

Burmese Temple

Charles Hall, a former owner of the house, shot himself. Walter Hutchinson 'a well known publisher' also killed himself by taking an overdose of sleeping pills.

There is a story that a girl hanged herself from an oak tree that is now known as Sadie’s Corner.

A horse drawn coach lost control and crashed into the Top Lake and was never seen again.

Stanbridge used to have a large wooden Buddhist temple in the grounds known as the 'Burmese Temple' erected without the use of any nails, but by interlocking hinges. It had been bought from the Great Exhibition and re-erected near the Bottom Lake but was burnt down by a pupil in 1983, who was then expelled.

Notable former pupils

See also: Category:People educated at Stanbridge Earls

• Tom Hart Dyke - (Horticulturist, Plant Hunter and Designer of the World Garden of Plants)
• Marquis of Granby, David Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland (Antiques)
• Christopher Neame (Actor)
• Guy Ritchie (Film Director and ex-husband of Madonna)
• Marc Sinden (Actor and West End Theatre Producer)
• Jeremy Gilley (Actor and Peace Activist)

External links

• "Stanbridge Earls School, Specific Learning Difficulties, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia and mild Asperger's Syndrome". www.stanbridgeearls.co.uk. http://www.stanbridgeearls.co.uk/. Retrieved 2009-10-28. 

See also

• Roke Manor
• Public school
• Baron Greenway
• Peerage of the United Kingdom