Hurstpierpoint College

Hurstpierpoint College
Motto Latin: "Beati Mundo Corde"
(Blessed are the pure in heart)
Established 1849
Type Independent School
Religion Church of England
Headmaster Tim Manly
Chairman of Governors Tony Jarvis [1]
Founder Canon Nathaniel Woodard
Location College Lane
Hurstpierpoint
West Sussex
BN6 9JS
England
Local authority West Sussex
DfE number 938/6206
Students c.1,085
Gender Mixed
Ages 4–18
Houses 11
Colours Red and White         
Former pupils Old Johnians
Alumni Website www.theojclub.com
Affiliation Woodard Corporation
Website www.hppc.co.uk

Hurstpierpoint College is an independent, co-educational, day and boarding school for pupils aged 4–18, located just to the north of the village of Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex. The College was founded in 1849 by Canon Nathaniel Woodard and is a member of the Woodard Corporation.[2]

History and overview

The school was originally established in 1849 as St John's Middle School, based in Shoreham. Its first headmaster, Edward Clarke Lowe, had worked with Woodard at Lancing College and stayed at Hurstpierpoint for 22 years until 1872. The school moved to Mansion House in Hurstpierpoint and then, thanks to the local benefactors the Campion family, on 21 June 1853 made its final move to its present site. Intended to resemble the collegiate system at Oxford and Cambridge, Nathaniel Woodard designed the College to have adjoining Inner and Outer quads and the chapel and dining hall adjacent to each other.

The school was most recently inspected by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in early 2011.[3]

Houses

The senior school comprises 11 houses and then, whilst retaining affiliation to their former houses, all students in their last year (Upper Sixth) join the 12th house, the co-educational day and boarding 'hall of residence', St John's House.

Traditions

Inner quad
Front entrance

The school still preserves ceremonies, which for the most part were taken from other schools such as Winchester College, in order to give the school a feeling of tradition back in its early Victorian days.

"Hurst" has traditionally performed a Shakespeare play every year since 1854, beginning with Richard III after the first headmaster, Dr Lowe inspired the first players onto stage. This means that Hurstpierpoint College boasts the oldest Shakespeare society in existence,[4] older even than that of the Royal Shakespeare Company which was not formed until 1875.[5]

The Hurst Johnian, the school magazine, founded in May 1858 is the vital source for the School's history. Its policy has been to maintain the annals of the school, and it continues to publish current reports and articles on the past. Evidence from the national archives suggests that it is the oldest school magazine in the country.[6]

Notable Masters

Notable Old Johnians

Past students of Hurstpierpoint College are referred to as 'Old Johnians'.

Politics

Wales rugby player Ben Broster
Archbishop of Yukon Walter Adams

Diplomatic Service

Military

Media and arts

Sport

Religion

Other

Headmasters

Headmaster from 1873 to 1879 William Awdry
Close set flint walls

Southern Railway Schools Class

The school lent its name to the nineteenth steam locomotive (Engine 918) in the Southern Railway's Class V of which there were 40.[10] This Class was also known as the Schools Class because all 40 of the class were named after prominent English Public Schools. 'Hurstpierpoint', as it was called, was built in 1934 and was withdrawn in 1961.[10] Its nameplate is now housed in the School's Science Block.

References

  1. "Woodard Schools - Independent, State Maintained, Academies". Independent, Academy and Maintained Education - Woodard Schools.
  2. "Hurstpierpoint College :: Independent Schools Inspectorate". Isi.net. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-12-10. Retrieved 2014-03-04.
  4. "History of the RSC | A timeline | Royal Shakespeare Company". Rsc.org.uk. 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  5. "S. John's College, Hurstpierpoint Archive" (PDF). Nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  6. David Robinson, Chaplin, his life and art (1985), p. 45
  7. H. A. Saintsbury at the Internet Movie Database
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-12-27. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
  9. 1 2 "Southern Railway Schools Class". Retrieved 2008-06-29.

External links

Coordinates: 50°56′35″N 0°09′54″W / 50.94306°N 0.16500°W / 50.94306; -0.16500

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