St Mary's Hall, Brighton,

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, England, was 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 ...

secondary girls' school from 1836 to 2009.

History

George Basevi Elias George Basevi FRS (1 April 1794 – 16 October 1845) was a British architect who worked in both Neoclassical and Gothic Revival styles. A pupil of Sir John Soane, his designs included Belgrave Square in London, and the Fitzwilliam Muse ...

designed the Hall in the Early Tudor style in 1836, "with mullioned windows and a cross above the central gable", and the

Marquess of Bristol Marquess of Bristol is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom held by the Hervey family since 1826. The Marquess's subsidiary titles are Earl of Bristol (created 1714), Earl Jermyn, of Horningsheath in the County of Suffolk (1826), and ...

donated nine acres of land to build the school. Rev.

Henry Venn Elliott Henry Venn Elliott (1792–1865) was an English Anglicanism#Anglican divines, divine. Early years Elliott was born 17 January 1792, the son of Charles Elliott of Grove House, Clapham, and his second wife, Eling, daughter of Henry Venn (Clapham S ...

founded the school for the "daughters of poor clergy" in 1836. Elliott chose to locate the Hall in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

because "the

Prince Regent A prince regent or princess regent is a prince or princess who, due to their position in the line of succession, rules a monarchy as regent in the stead of a monarch, e.g., as a result of the sovereign's incapacity (minority or illness) or ab ...

had made it a popular place to live", and Elliott believed there would be many wealthy families in that locale seeking governesses. Early school registers, however, do not show many graduates were thus employed. In 1838, the school had 50 students. By 1861, the school had 120 students, and the school's Patron was the Archbishop of Canterbury, its President, the Bishop of Chichester, and its Secretary and Treasurer, Rev. H.V. Elliott. The school's chapel and concert hall, formerly St Mark's Church, was consecrated in 1849. Built by Thomas Shelbourne in Early English style, it has an 1860 memorial window and monument to the Marquess of Bristol. In 1860, contributions and legacies totaled £1319, and pupils' payments, £2,812. In 1877, the ''Handbook for Travellers to Sussex'' described the school as "an excellent institution for education orphan daughters of clergymen as governesses, on payment of £20 per annum". The Hall was expanded in 1920 when daughters of laymen were admitted. The first pupil to go on to Oxford or Cambridge was Victoria Laughland who went to St Hilda's College in the 1960s to read French and German. A new hall was added in 1969, and in 1976 the school erected a classroom block and swimming-pool. Venn House for sixth-formers was added in 1981, and the school added a junior school block in 1983, and a pre-preparatory block in 1989. By 1990, the school had more than 400 pupils.

School merger and closure

School officials considered admitting boys during 2007. St Mary's reported £1.93 million in debts in 2008, as well as losses in four of the previous five years. Eventually, St Mary's Hall, Brighton, was merged with

Roedean School Roedean () is a private boarding school governed by royal charter on the outskirts of Brighton, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1885 by three sisters to educate wealthy daughters and heiresses of aristocracy and industrial elites of the 19t ...

in 2009 due to "economic circumstances" that "left it with no choice but to close and end 173 years of independence". When Roedean closed St Mary's Hall in 2009, eleven remaining teachers lost their jobs. Roedean sold the buildings to

Royal Sussex County Hospital The Royal Sussex County Hospital is an acute teaching hospital in Brighton, England. Together with the Princess Royal Hospital, it is administered by the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust. The services provided at the hospital inc ...

to serve as temporary facilities for departments displaced during its redevelopment project. Redevelopment of the buildings began in 2013.

Notable former pupils

* Victoria Laughland (1944–1994), charity founder *

Natascha McElhone Natascha Abigail Taylor (born 14 December 1971), known professionally as Natascha McElhone (), is an English actress. In film, she has starred in the action thriller ''Ronin (film), Ronin'' (1998), the psychological comedy-drama ''The Truman Sho ...

(born 1969), actress *

Fiona Mont Fiona Mary Hesketh (born Fiona Mary Mont, and known as "The Cat", 1 April 1970) is an English former fugitive who became known as "Britain's Most Wanted Woman" during a major police and media hunt in connection with allegations of corporate fr ...

(born 1970), former fugitive, "Britain's Most Wanted Woman" * Sarah Murray (born 1970), Scottish Episcopal priest and Provost of Inverness Cathedral * Anna Campbell (1991–2018), anti-ISIS guerrilla fighter of the YPJ killed by Turkish airstrikes in 2018, daughter of rock musician

Mont Campbell Dirk Campbell (born Hugo Martin Montgomery Campbell, 30 December 1950), previously known as Mont Campbell, is a British composer, multi-instrumentalist, and company executive. Campbell is best known for his work with progressive rock bands suc ...

References

External links

St Mary's Hall Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary's Hall Brighton Educational institutions established in 1836 1836 establishments in England Defunct schools in Brighton and Hove Educational institutions disestablished in 2009 2009 disestablishments in England