Hanford School
Encyclopedia
Hanford School is a girls' boarding preparatory school
located in Hanford, near Shillingstone
, Child Okeford
, Dorset
, England
, established in 1947 and located in a grade II* listed house built in 1604 by Sir Robert Seymer.
Sue Carpenter described the school as "an adorable throwback to an Enid Blyton era, set in a Jacobean manor and beautiful grounds in Dorset, where pupils canter over the downs before breakfast and do scripture classes in the box-hedge garden."
The two houses are called the Main House and Fan’s House.
in 1604, or 1620, and completed in 1623, by Sir Robert Seymer, who was a teller of the Exchequer and who was knighted in 1619, and whose family had lived in Hanford for several centuries, and the small Gothic
chapel was built in 1650. The magazine, Country Life, wrote in 1905 that "the chapel is a picturesque building with a high gable, pleasant to look at, and within are several memorials of the Seymers."
In 1947, the house and grounds were bought by the Reverend and Mrs. Clifford Canning and converted to a school. Clifford Canning had been headmaster of Canford School
. In 1959, the school was taken over by their daughter, Sarah. In 1960, the building was listed as grade II*, ten days after the nearby Church of St Michael and All Angels. After retiring as headmistress in 2003, she handed the school over to the Hanford School Charitable Trust in 2004, which now runs it.
Preparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
located in Hanford, near Shillingstone
Shillingstone
Shillingstone is a village in the Blackmore Vale area of north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour between Sturminster Newton and Blandford Forum...
, Child Okeford
Child Okeford
Child Okeford is a quiet village in north Dorset, England, situated four miles east of Sturminster Newton and downstream from it along the River Stour which passes half a mile west of the village...
, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, established in 1947 and located in a grade II* listed house built in 1604 by Sir Robert Seymer.
Background
The school does not have a motto.Sue Carpenter described the school as "an adorable throwback to an Enid Blyton era, set in a Jacobean manor and beautiful grounds in Dorset, where pupils canter over the downs before breakfast and do scripture classes in the box-hedge garden."
The two houses are called the Main House and Fan’s House.
History
Hanford House was built in Jacobean styleJacobean architecture
The Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James I of England, with whose reign it is associated.-Characteristics:...
in 1604, or 1620, and completed in 1623, by Sir Robert Seymer, who was a teller of the Exchequer and who was knighted in 1619, and whose family had lived in Hanford for several centuries, and the small Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
chapel was built in 1650. The magazine, Country Life, wrote in 1905 that "the chapel is a picturesque building with a high gable, pleasant to look at, and within are several memorials of the Seymers."
In 1947, the house and grounds were bought by the Reverend and Mrs. Clifford Canning and converted to a school. Clifford Canning had been headmaster of Canford School
Canford School
Canford School is a coeducational independent school for both day and boarding pupils, in the village of Canford Magna, near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, in South West England. The school was founded in 1923. There are approximately 600 pupils at Canford, organised into houses...
. In 1959, the school was taken over by their daughter, Sarah. In 1960, the building was listed as grade II*, ten days after the nearby Church of St Michael and All Angels. After retiring as headmistress in 2003, she handed the school over to the Hanford School Charitable Trust in 2004, which now runs it.
Notable alumni
- Amanda ForemanAmanda Foreman (biographer)Amanda Lucy Foreman is a British/American biographer and historian.-Family:Her father was the renowned screenwriter and film producer Carl Foreman who had to move to England in order to work after being blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studios during the McCarthyism of the 1950s...
- Emma KirkbyEmma KirkbyDame Carolyn Emma Kirkby, DBE is an English soprano singer and one of the world's most renowned early music specialists. She attended Sherborne School For Girls in Dorset and was a classics student at Somerville College, Oxford, and an English teacher before developing a career as a soloist...
- Santa MontefioreSanta MontefioreSanta Montefiore, born Santa Palmer-Tomkinson, is a British author.Santa is the sister of Tara Palmer-Tomkinson. Her parents are Charles Palmer-Tomkinson and Patricia Palmer-Tomkinson, of Anglo-Argentine background. Her father represented his country in skiing at Olympic level...
- Tara Palmer-TomkinsonTara Palmer-TomkinsonTara Palmer-Tomkinson also known as T P-T, is an English socialite, "it girl", television presenter, columnist and model...
External links
- Hanford School at the Independent Schools Council
- Hanford School at the Independent Schools Inspectorate
- Hanford School, Dorset at ISBI