Cokethorpe School is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...

Witney Witney is a market town on the River Windrush in West Oxfordshire in the county of Oxfordshire, England. It is west of Oxford. History The Toponymy, place-name "Witney" is derived from the Old English for "Witta's island". The earliest kno ...

West Oxfordshire West Oxfordshire is a local government district in northwest Oxfordshire, England, including towns such as Woodstock, Burford, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Carterton and Witney, where the council is based. Area The area is mainly rural downla ...

. The school was founded in 1957 by Francis Brown. It is a member of HMC, IAPS, and The Society of Heads. The school has approximately 660 students from ages 4 to 18.

History

Cokethorpe School Geograph-3428838-by-Stephen-Richards

The country house was used by

Simon Harcourt, 1st Viscount Harcourt Simon Harcourt, 1st Viscount Harcourt, PC (December 1661 – 29 July 1727) of Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire, was an English Tory politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1690 until 1710. He was raised to the peerage ...

. When Major Percy Henry Guy Feilden and his wife, Dorothy Louisa Brand, moved there in 1908, they undertook extensive renovations. He died on 25 March 1944 and was buried there. His son, Major-General Randle Guy Feilden, who was later knighted, was his successor. In 1957, it was left with part of the grounds to Francis Brown, who opened the school as a secondary boys' boarding school with 14 pupils. In about 1960 Yarnton Manor was used as a dormitory of the school. In 1963, a charitable trust was formed, and in 1966, the school buildings and grounds were sold to the school trustees. HardwickCokethorpe StMary DedicationStone

HardwickCokethorpe StMary DedicationStone

Cokethorpe School is a joint

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

and

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

foundation. The chapel is on the golf course on the school grounds. It is the former parish church of Hardwick and was restored and extended in 1973. In 1985, the roof of the northwest wing was studied while the building was being repaired. In 1986 work began on the construction of further buildings. The School started admitting girls in 1992 and opened a Prep School in 1994. The boarding facility was closed in 2003.

Facilities

The school runs out of an 18th-century

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

Queen Anne style

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

. The grounds include a chapel, rugby/football pitches, and astro pitches. A carved ‘giant’ peacock stands at the central crossroads within the school grounds. Cokethorpe has a strong sporting tradition with students playing national age group rugby and England women's hockey.

Notable former pupils

Martin Edwards Charles Martin Edwards (born 24 July 1945) is the former chairman of Manchester United F.C., Manchester United, a position he held from 1980 until 2002. He now holds the position of honorary life president at the club and Director of Inview Tech ...

, former

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

chairman * Richard Hills, jockey, six-time British Classics winner, twin brother to Michael Hills * Michael Hills, jockey, 1996

Derby Stakes The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...

winner, twin brother to Richard Hills * Toby Sebastian, actor – portrayed Trystane Martell in the HBO series

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by David Benioff and for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of high fantasy novels by ...

* Henry Purdy, professional rugby player

References

{{coord , 51.753, -1.465, type:edu_region:GB, display=title 1957 establishments in England Educational institutions established in 1957 Grade II* listed buildings in Oxfordshire Grade II* listed educational buildings Private schools in Oxfordshire Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference