King Edward's Witley is an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

boarding and day

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

, founded in 1553 by

King Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

and Nicholas Ridley, Bishop of London and Westminster. The School is located in the village of Wormley (near Witley), Surrey,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, having moved to its present location in 1867. The School became fully co-educational in 1952. As of September 2010, the school has joined the small number of independent schools in the UK which offer the

IB Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...

in place of

A-Levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

in the sixth form. The school re-introduced A-levels as part of the curriculum from September 2015.

History

The school was founded as

Bridewell Royal Hospital The Bridewell and Bethlehem Hospitals were two charitable foundations that were independently put into the charge of the City of London. They were brought under joint administration in 1557. Bethlehem Hospital The Bethlem Royal Hospital was found ...

, after Nicholas Ridley petitioned

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

to give some of his empty palaces over to the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

(governed by the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...

) to house homeless women and children. In 1867 the school moved from the City of London to the present location in Surrey, at the same time adopting the current name. In common with other large building located outside of urban areas the school installed its own gasworks. The School was commandeered by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

to test and develop the use of

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

. The School still remembers this with a plaque in the central area, a junction of corridors known as 'Piccadilly'. The president of Bridewell Royal Hospital (the title was kept after the move of location) is now

Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester, (born Birgitte Eva van Deurs Henriksen; 20 June 1946) is a Danish member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, a grandson of George V. They have three children. E ...

, appointed from 1 January 2006. Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother held the title from 1953 to 2002. The school's creation was sanctioned by the same charter as that of

Christ's Hospital Christ's Hospital is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 11–18) with a royal charter located to the south of Horsham in West Sussex. The school was founded in 1552 and received its first royal charter in 1553. ...

and St Thomas' Hospital, and uses the same coat of arms as Christ's Hospital. The School maintains strong links with the

, and is still supported by it, with some pupils on bursaries funded by the city. As of the academic year 2021/22 Senior School day fees are £20,520 per year, with senior school boarding fees £33,675 per year, though a number of bursaries and

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...

s are available. The school has had one known instance of impropriety. In early 2015 Edward Moore, a choirmaster, was convicted to a 9-month sentence for inappropriate conduct with a girl student. In July 2019 the Department for Education requested an unannounced additional visit by the Independent Schools Inspectorate to check the School's compliance with legal regulations and standards. The School was judged not to be meeting regulations including those relating to safeguarding. In February 2020 the school underwent an unannounced progress monitoring visit in order to check if the School had fully implemented the plans set out following the visit in July 2019. The findings of the inspection were that the school met the required standards for the regulations that were the main focus of the visit. The School met all of the requirements of the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulation 2014, National Minimum Standards for Boarding Schools 2015, and no further action was required as a result of the visit.

Houses

There are six senior Houses in total, four male and two female. The Houses at the School are paired, and, in the case of the senior pupils, conjoined in the centre of the buildings. This central area allows the boys and girls from the paired Houses to meet in the evenings and during spare time. The Lower School pupils board in Queen Mary House (QMH) where there are shared communal areas and separate sleeping quarters. The senior Houses were built in the 1970s, and the plans can be seen in the school museum, housed in the History Department. Boarders moved into these new buildings in fall 1976 and the inauguration was commemorated by a visit from Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. The school recently renovated some of the Senior Houses. Ridley relocated next to Grafton. Ridley's relocation leaves 'Old Ridley' and St Bridget's, a former girls House, empty and work has already begun on re-purposing these houses into a day-and-boarding, mixed house reserved for Upper Sixth pupils due to open in September 2022. The houses, in their pairs, are:

Juniors

*Queen Mary House - Queen Mary was president of the School from 1940 until 1953. It is known as QMH.

Seniors

*Wakefield – After

Charles Wakefield, 1st Viscount Wakefield Charles Cheers Wakefield, 1st Viscount Wakefield, GCVO, CBE (12 December 1859 – 15 January 1941), was an English businessman who founded the Castrol lubricants company, was lord mayor of London and was a significant philanthropist. Early l ...

, president and benefactor from 1916 to 1940. This is a boys' House. Paired with Elizabeth. *Elizabeth – After Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, president of Bridewell Royal Hospital from 1953 to 2002. She visited the School four times, in 1958, 1965, 1976 and 1991. This is a girls' House and is paired with Wakefield *Edward – After

, the founder. This is a boys' House and is paired with Tudor. *Tudor – After The House of Tudor, the current royal family at the time of the School's founding. This is a girls' House and paired with Edward. *Grafton – After

Richard Grafton Richard Grafton (c. 1506/7 or 1511 – 1573) was King's Printer under Henry VIII and Edward VI. He was a member of the Grocers' Company and MP for Coventry elected 1562-63. Under Henry VIII With Edward Whitchurch, a member of the Haberdashe ...

, MP, printer and historian. The first treasurer of Bridewell Royal Hospital. This is a boys' House and was formerly paired with St Bridget's but is now a bachelor House. *Queens' - After the two queens who have been presidents (

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

and

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

). This girls' House closed as of September 2019. * Ridley – Named after bishop Nicholas Ridley, who preached to King Edward to request Bridewell Palace be given to the City of London for charitable purposes. This House was unused for a number of years, but re-opened September 2013 having undergone extensive refurbishment. This is a boys' day House. *St Bridget's – Saint Brigid of Kildare was a 5th-century Irish saint who is associated with a well which gave its name to the church of St. Bride and then to the palace, Bridewell Palace, built by Henry VIII. St Bridget's and 'Old Ridley' are being renovated to create an Upper Sixth Form House due to open in September 2022.

School publications

There school alumni magazine, ''KEStrel'', published bi-annually, that incorporates recent school events and news.

Notable Old Witleians

Former pupils of King Edward's are referred to as Old Witleians, or Old Wits. * Phil Andrew - Archdeacon of Cheltenham *

Sally Bercow Sally Kate Bercow (''née'' Illman; born 22 November 1969) is a British public personality and the wife of the former Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow. Early life Bercow attended the independent co-educational King Edward's School ...

- wife of John Bercow, former Speaker of the House of Commons * Ivor Caplin - Labour Member of Parliament * Edd China - television presenter * Sir Peter Estlin -

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

Liz Gordon Elizabeth Audrey Gordon (born 8 September 1955) is a former New Zealand politician. She was an MP from 1996 to 2002, representing the Alliance. Early life Elizabeth Audrey Gordon (known as Liz) was born in Preston, England, on 8 September 195 ...

- New Zealand Member of Parliament *

Du'aine Ladejo Du'aine Ladejo (born 14 February 1971, in Paddington, London, England) is an English-born Athletics (sport), athlete and television personality. In his sports career, he was best known for winning the 400 metres sprint gold medal at the 1994 Eur ...

- Olympic silver medalist * Jemma Mitchell case - Murderer * James Mullinger - comedian * Sung-Hak Mun - racing driver * Richard Short - actor *

Edward Tudor-Pole Edward Felix Tudor-Pole (also known as Edward Tenpole, though he introduced himself as "Ed" on several episodes of '' The Crystal Maze''; born 6 December 1955) is an English musician, television presenter and actor. Originally gaining fame in t ...

- musician and actor

Heads

* Joseph Myall ( –1856) * Edward Rudge (1856–1886) * Gerard Mason (1886–1900) * Charles Raynham (1900–1926) *

Alfred Bellerby Rev. Alfred Courthope Benson Bellerby (26 January 1888 – 10 April 1979) was a British athlete and educator. He competed in the men's long jump and the men's high jump at the 1908 Summer Olympics.''Britain and the Olympic Games, 1908-1920' ...

(1926–1951) * Gordon Humphreys * John Hansford (1969–1980) * Richard Wilkinson * Rodney Fox (1988–2000) * Kerr Fulton-Peebles (2000–2010) * John Attwater (2010–2019) * Joanna Wright (2019– )

Notable associations

* Christopher Cocksworth - teacher (1981–1984) * Caroline Cox, Baroness Cox – governor *

- patron *

John Palmer, 4th Earl of Selborne John Roundell Palmer, 4th Earl of Selborne, (24 March 1940 – 12 February 2021), was a British peer, ecological expert, and businessman. He was one of the hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords after the enactment of the H ...

– treasurer (1972–1983) * Samuel Pepys – governor in the 17th century *

Sir James Sanderson, 1st Baronet Sir James Sanderson, 1st Baronet (30 December 1741 – 21 June 1798) was an English banker, a Member of Parliament, an alderman and Lord Mayor of London. He also served as president of Bridewell Hospital (now a school), and was a member of Wil ...

– president of Bridewell (1793–98) * Sir John Stuttard - governor

References

External links

King Edward's Witley websiteProfile
on the

Independent Schools Council The Independent Schools Council (ISC) is a non-profit lobby group that represents over 1,300 schools in the United Kingdom's independent education sector. The organisation comprises seven independent school associations and promotes the bus ...

website {{Waverley 1553 establishments in England Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference Educational institutions established in the 1550s Boarding schools in Surrey Independent schools in Surrey International Baccalaureate schools in England Godalming Church of England independent schools in the Diocese of Guildford Schools with a royal charter King Edward VI Schools