Stoke Brunswick School was a small

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 ...

day and boarding

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

for children aged 3 to 13 years, situated in Ashurst Wood,

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, near the town of

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. It was the former junior school (after St. George's School in

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), of British Prime Minister

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(then known as Brunswick School and located in

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, neighbouring

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). The last headmaster was Richard Taylor. who took over from Mark Ellerton in 2005. Before closing, the school had 138 pupils. Stoke Brunswick School closed in the summer of 2009 because the forecast pupil intake for September was "not adequate". Despite their best efforts to secure the school's future, including a six figure financial pledge, the parents fell just short of numbers for it to continue.

History

The oldest wing of the building, in which the Headmaster resided, dates back to the 14th century and was a hunting lodge belonging to John of Gaunt. The rest of building, built in the 17th century, was originally situated in Cheshire and was called Dutton Hall. It was transported piece by piece to its current location, Homestall, in the 1930s by the Dewar family. During World War II, it was used by the Red Cross to house military casualties, including burned aircrew (members of the Guinea Pig Club) recovering from surgeries performed by Archibald McIndoe and his plastic surgery team at nearby

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. One of the pilots staying here was Richard Hillary, a

Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. It was the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the ...

pilot who in 1942 wrote a best-selling book, The Last Enemy, which has been in print ever since. It became an all-boys school after WWII. The school became

in 1964.

Grounds

The school was situated in the idyllic setting of the Sussex countryside. There were of grounds for the children to play in. of these 30 were mainly woodland, in which the children would play at breaktimes in summer.

Facilities

The school had 28 classrooms. There was a chemistry lab, a library, a newly refurbished gymnasium, a chapel, a swimming pool, 8 playing fields, a 9-hole golf course, extensive

dyslexia Dyslexia (), previously known as word blindness, is a learning disability that affects either reading or writing. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, reading quickly, wri ...

facilities, a pre-prep school and a network of computers for teachers and pupils alike to use.

Music

The school had a reputation as one of the most musical in the area. The last head of music was Caroline Long, who took over from Sue Barber in 2006. She taught the pupils using the Kodály method. The school choir often reached the semi-finals of Children's Choir of the Year, and participated in Glyndebourne operatic productions numerous times. All of the pupils were encouraged to learn a musical instrument and sing. The successful drum group performed at numerous prestigious locations, and reached the finals of the Music for Youth competition at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London, England. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a G ...

for the last two consecutive years. The Stoke Brunswick choir was well known by many in the area.

Sport

Stoke Brunswick offered a wide range of sports and encouraged participation whatever the individual's abilities. Even though the teams were chosen on individual merit, the school held swimming galas and sports days to get all of the pupils involved. The pupils at the school played a wide variety of sports, including: Rugby, Hockey, Tennis, Netball,

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, Cricket, Basketball, Softball, Rounders, Athletics and Football (Soccer).

Headmasters

*John Bartlett, 1965–1981 *Mark Ellerton, 1981–2005 *Richard Taylor, 2005–2009

Notable alumni

, former British Prime Minister and war-time leader * Alex Stobbs, academic and music scholar *

Jonathan King Jonathan King (born Kenneth George King; 6 December 1944) is an English singer, songwriter and record producer. He first came to prominence in 1965 when "Everyone's Gone to the Moon", a song that he wrote and sang while still an undergraduate, ...

, record producer, singer and songwriter

References

External links

"Parents fail in bid to save Stoke Brunswick School" School closure article on ThisIsSussex
{{authority control Defunct schools in West Sussex Educational institutions disestablished in 2009 2009 disestablishments in England Forest Row