Ibstock Place School
Encyclopedia
Ibstock Place School is an independent co-educational day school for pupils aged 3 to 18 located in Roehampton, south-west London.
The School was founded as the Froebel Demonstration School, the name meaning that it was connected with the Froebel Institute
and the demonstration of its educational principles.
At that time, the principles of Froebel Education were considered to be quite radical. It was the educational benefactor Julia Salis Schwabe (1819–1896) who proposed the establishment of a teacher training college with a demonstration school in England. She was a strong proponent of the Froebel system of education, where the first learning experiences of the very young are seen as of crucial importance to a child’s development and, therefore, to the health of society as a whole. Having established a successful Froebel ‘kindergarten’ in Naples, Mrs Salis Schwabe felt Froebel’s educational philosophy was the key to social progress. Her friend Claude Montefiore
(1858–1938) was appointed Secretary of the inaugural Froebel Society, and as joint benefactors they met any financial deficits. The college and school finally opened in Kensington on 20 September 1894 and the Grand Opening by the Empress Frederick took place on 5 March 1895. The school flourished and many liberal intellectual families sent their children until age 13 years. One Head Girl was Iris Murdoch
, renowned English author.
At the outbreak of World War II the school was evacuated from London to Dennison House in the village of Little Gaddesden in Hertfordshire with Headmistress, Barbara Priestman. There many lessons took place on the vast lawn outside to make as much use as possible of natural daylight. The children were taken for picnics and long rambles after their Sports Field was ploughed up to grow hay. Miss Priestman counted her blessings when she returned to London after the war with a full complement of children and staff.
The Froebel Education College had moved to Grove House, Roehampton in 1922 and been renamed the Incorporated Froebel Educational Institute (IFEI). The Institute purchased nearby Ibstock Place House in Clarence Lane for the Froebel Demonstration School, renaming it Ibstock Place, the Froebel School. The house, formerly a magnificent family home, had been requisitioned during the war. When the school first moved in 1946 the grounds were dotted with army huts which were soon put to use as a dining room, library or art room. At that time the school also took boarders. On the establishment of the University of London Institute of Education, IFEI became one of the constituent colleges. Eglantyne Mary Jebb retired as the College Principal in 1955 and was succeeded by Molly Brearley who oversaw some major changes, not least the requirement in 1960 that all teachers take a three-year training course. Molly Brearley took an active role in developing trainee Froebel teachers at Ibstock Place.
In September 1978 the age range was extended to sixteen years and in July 1980 pupils sat the first ‘O-level’ examinations. The school still took a number of boarders but there were no longer dormitories in the Main House; boarders lived in nearby Templeton House (Headquarters of The Froebel Council) in Priory Lane, Roehampton. Pupil numbers grew steadily and by 1989 there was a School Roll of 370 pupils. At this time, Ibstock Place School was in the strong position of being the only independent co-educational Senior School in south West London. By 1993 the School Roll numbered 450 pupils. The school Centenary was commemorated in 1994 at a special Prize Giving ceremony in July at Templeton. The guest speaker Professor David Bellamy
memorably asked the prize winning pupils to get down on their hands and knees to examine pond-life in the ornamental pool in the grounds of Templeton. In 1996 the Golden Jubilee was celebrated to mark 50 years in Roehampton, with pupils planting 2000 golden daffodils in the grounds. In 2005, a sixth form was established and the age range extended to 18 years. By 2011 the school roll numbered 880 pupils aged from 3 to 18 years.
Ibstock Place School is independent of the college but retains a link through the IFEI and the Froebel Council, the members of which are trustees of the School. The Governing Body of Ibstock Place School takes responsibility for the management of the school and the Chairman of the Governors and the Head report to the Froebel Council three times a year.
The main school house was built in 1913 by the architect Frank Chesterton and had sixteen bedrooms and four reception rooms. Originally named St. Serf’s, the house was lived in by the Duchess of Sutherland
until 1920. Archive photographs from Country Life journal reveal how magnificently she decorated the house which featured a ballroom (now Gerald East library) as well as beautiful gardens providing ‘an abundance of enjoyment’.
In 1925, Major John Paget purchased the house, renaming it Ibstock Place after the Leicestershire village which was his ancestral home. The Pagets moved in with three young children and later, another son was born (in the room to the right at the top of the main staircase). The house was luxuriously furnished with antiques including a Louis XVI suite of Aubusson tapestries and two grand pianos. Major Paget was interested in ‘modern gadgets’ and installed a sun-bed parlour and a telephone exchange. A swimming pool was also built - one of the first private pools in Britain – although without the benefit of modern chlorine, the pool was green and full of tadpoles and frogs. The house was run with the help of a staff of thirteen in the staff wing (now the music rehearsal corridor) as well as a night watchman and a gardener who lived in the Lodge (on the corner of Clarence and Priory Lanes).
The Pagets loved to entertain and hosted an annual garden party for guests from the world of musical theatre. Major Paget’s party trick was to tell fortunes and his daughter Winifred recounts in the early 1930s how he read the palm of a house guest, Mrs Wallis Simpson, prophesying that she would be ‘queen of England in all but name.’ Aged nineteen, Winifred was presented to Queen Mary after her debutante year in which she held her own ball at Ibstock Place. Later her wedding reception took place in the house and photographs of the wedding party on the terrace appeared in The Times.
After the outbreak of World War II the Paget family moved to Oxfordshire, and in 1942 the house was requisitioned by the Ministry of Supply for a military research group (AORG). This comprised scientists who carried out top secret work in the field of radar development.
In August 1945 the Pagets sold the house to the Froebel Educational Institute to rehouse their demonstration school which had been evacuated to Hertfordshire from Kensington during the war. The house was in disarray after being used by the army who had also constructed a number of air raid shelters and huts in the grounds and on the terrace. These were soon converted by the school into a dining room and classrooms, with the Scouts HQ in the shelter.
Since 2000 the house has undergone a programme of refurbishment to restore it to its former splendour.
1946: Grove House Nursery (in the Pavilion on Lawrence site)
1951 and 1954: Long corridor classrooms built in 2 sections:
1964: Gymnasium (costing £12,427) built next to the ‘Long Corridor’ classrooms
1968(?): Dining Room built, having originally been in army hut on the terrace
1978 - 1991: Library in Army hut on terrace (demolished in January 1999)
1984: Fire destroyed Barbara Priestman House
1986: Opening of rebuilt Barbara Priestman House
1988: October - Opening of first Macleod House by Sheila Macleod; original open-air swimming pool enclosed
1992: October - FSTC Building opened by HRH Princess Alexandra
1995: September - Opening of Sports Pavilion, with Maths Room; Maths Department moves to the Pavilion; Footbridge over Clarence Lane completed
1996: ‘Orchard’ demountable green buildings installed - called ‘Timbertops’ - to house Nursery overspill.
1997: Priestman House 2 completed
1998: March - Roberts Hall officially opened by Sheila Roberts; all weather sports courts built on Lawrence House site adjacent to the Pavilion; old Greenhouses demolished to create the site
1999: Conservatory extension to Dining Room completed
2002: December: New Macleod House Junior School officially opened
2008: New Sports Hall on Lawrence House site opened by Mr Michael Gibbins, Chairman of Governors; Long Corridor and old gymnasium demolished; construction starts on New School
2010-2011: New School opens (science laboratories, classrooms, library, ICT suite, pupil facilities)
2011: Refurbishment of FSTC to become Humanities Centre, connected to New School
The School was founded as the Froebel Demonstration School, the name meaning that it was connected with the Froebel Institute
Froebel College
Froebel College is one of the four constituent colleges of Roehampton University. The college was founded in 1892 by followers of Friedrich Fröbel.-External links:* *...
and the demonstration of its educational principles.
History of the School
Ibstock Place School was named after the original house in Clarence Lane, Roehampton where the school moved in 1946, and remains today. Nearby in Roehampton was the Froebel Education College which pioneered the educational ideas of Friedrich Froebel in Britain in 1892. At the end of the nineteenth century, the College had been established in Kensington, West London, and the first Froebel Demonstration School was founded in 1894 in Colet Gardens. The first headmistress was Esther Lawrence, and there were 6 pupils.The Froebel Demonstration School
At that time, the principles of Froebel Education were considered to be quite radical. It was the educational benefactor Julia Salis Schwabe (1819–1896) who proposed the establishment of a teacher training college with a demonstration school in England. She was a strong proponent of the Froebel system of education, where the first learning experiences of the very young are seen as of crucial importance to a child’s development and, therefore, to the health of society as a whole. Having established a successful Froebel ‘kindergarten’ in Naples, Mrs Salis Schwabe felt Froebel’s educational philosophy was the key to social progress. Her friend Claude Montefiore
Claude Montefiore
Claude Joseph Goldsmid Montefiore was son of Nathaniel Montefiore, and the great nephew of Sir Moses Montefiore. Some identify him as a significant figure in the contexts of modern Jewish religious thought, Jewish-Christian relations, and Anglo-Jewish socio-politics.-Education:He was educated at...
(1858–1938) was appointed Secretary of the inaugural Froebel Society, and as joint benefactors they met any financial deficits. The college and school finally opened in Kensington on 20 September 1894 and the Grand Opening by the Empress Frederick took place on 5 March 1895. The school flourished and many liberal intellectual families sent their children until age 13 years. One Head Girl was Iris Murdoch
Iris Murdoch
Dame Iris Murdoch DBE was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about political and social questions of good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious...
, renowned English author.
Evacuation in World War II
At the outbreak of World War II the school was evacuated from London to Dennison House in the village of Little Gaddesden in Hertfordshire with Headmistress, Barbara Priestman. There many lessons took place on the vast lawn outside to make as much use as possible of natural daylight. The children were taken for picnics and long rambles after their Sports Field was ploughed up to grow hay. Miss Priestman counted her blessings when she returned to London after the war with a full complement of children and staff.
Ibstock Place School moves to Roehampton, South West London
The Froebel Education College had moved to Grove House, Roehampton in 1922 and been renamed the Incorporated Froebel Educational Institute (IFEI). The Institute purchased nearby Ibstock Place House in Clarence Lane for the Froebel Demonstration School, renaming it Ibstock Place, the Froebel School. The house, formerly a magnificent family home, had been requisitioned during the war. When the school first moved in 1946 the grounds were dotted with army huts which were soon put to use as a dining room, library or art room. At that time the school also took boarders. On the establishment of the University of London Institute of Education, IFEI became one of the constituent colleges. Eglantyne Mary Jebb retired as the College Principal in 1955 and was succeeded by Molly Brearley who oversaw some major changes, not least the requirement in 1960 that all teachers take a three-year training course. Molly Brearley took an active role in developing trainee Froebel teachers at Ibstock Place.
In September 1978 the age range was extended to sixteen years and in July 1980 pupils sat the first ‘O-level’ examinations. The school still took a number of boarders but there were no longer dormitories in the Main House; boarders lived in nearby Templeton House (Headquarters of The Froebel Council) in Priory Lane, Roehampton. Pupil numbers grew steadily and by 1989 there was a School Roll of 370 pupils. At this time, Ibstock Place School was in the strong position of being the only independent co-educational Senior School in south West London. By 1993 the School Roll numbered 450 pupils. The school Centenary was commemorated in 1994 at a special Prize Giving ceremony in July at Templeton. The guest speaker Professor David Bellamy
David Bellamy
David James Bellamy OBE is a British author, broadcaster, environmental campaigner and botanist. He has lived in County Durham since 1960.-Career:...
memorably asked the prize winning pupils to get down on their hands and knees to examine pond-life in the ornamental pool in the grounds of Templeton. In 1996 the Golden Jubilee was celebrated to mark 50 years in Roehampton, with pupils planting 2000 golden daffodils in the grounds. In 2005, a sixth form was established and the age range extended to 18 years. By 2011 the school roll numbered 880 pupils aged from 3 to 18 years.
Ibstock Place School is independent of the college but retains a link through the IFEI and the Froebel Council, the members of which are trustees of the School. The Governing Body of Ibstock Place School takes responsibility for the management of the school and the Chairman of the Governors and the Head report to the Froebel Council three times a year.
Headmistresses and Headmasters
For a year after the death in 1898 of Esther Lawrence, there were joint Headmistresses – Miss Boys-Smith and Miss Hope-Wallace - and then Grace Lucknow took over until 1900. From 1900 the Headmistress was Annie Yelland. On the untimely death of Miss Yelland in 1916, teacher, Miss Wigg, took over as Head during the interregnum until the appointment of Ethel Bain in 1918. Miss Bain served until her retirement in 1933 when Barbara Priestman was appointed. Miss Priestman is the longest-serving Headmistress, remaining in post for 25 years until 1958. Miss Sheila Macleod was Headmistress from 1958 to 1974, Mr T.C. Green from 1974 to 1980, Mr Aidan Warlow from 1980 to 1984, Mrs Franciska Bayliss from 1984 to 2000. The current Headmistress is Mrs Anna Sylvester-Johnson.St. Serf’s House 1913-1924
The main school house was built in 1913 by the architect Frank Chesterton and had sixteen bedrooms and four reception rooms. Originally named St. Serf’s, the house was lived in by the Duchess of Sutherland
Eileen Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland
Eileen Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland , born Lady Eileen Gwladys Butler and styled Marchioness of Stafford from 1912 to 1913, was a British courtier....
until 1920. Archive photographs from Country Life journal reveal how magnificently she decorated the house which featured a ballroom (now Gerald East library) as well as beautiful gardens providing ‘an abundance of enjoyment’.
Ibstock Place House 1925-1942
In 1925, Major John Paget purchased the house, renaming it Ibstock Place after the Leicestershire village which was his ancestral home. The Pagets moved in with three young children and later, another son was born (in the room to the right at the top of the main staircase). The house was luxuriously furnished with antiques including a Louis XVI suite of Aubusson tapestries and two grand pianos. Major Paget was interested in ‘modern gadgets’ and installed a sun-bed parlour and a telephone exchange. A swimming pool was also built - one of the first private pools in Britain – although without the benefit of modern chlorine, the pool was green and full of tadpoles and frogs. The house was run with the help of a staff of thirteen in the staff wing (now the music rehearsal corridor) as well as a night watchman and a gardener who lived in the Lodge (on the corner of Clarence and Priory Lanes).
The Pagets loved to entertain and hosted an annual garden party for guests from the world of musical theatre. Major Paget’s party trick was to tell fortunes and his daughter Winifred recounts in the early 1930s how he read the palm of a house guest, Mrs Wallis Simpson, prophesying that she would be ‘queen of England in all but name.’ Aged nineteen, Winifred was presented to Queen Mary after her debutante year in which she held her own ball at Ibstock Place. Later her wedding reception took place in the house and photographs of the wedding party on the terrace appeared in The Times.
World War II 1942-1945
After the outbreak of World War II the Paget family moved to Oxfordshire, and in 1942 the house was requisitioned by the Ministry of Supply for a military research group (AORG). This comprised scientists who carried out top secret work in the field of radar development.
Froebel Demonstration School 1945-
In August 1945 the Pagets sold the house to the Froebel Educational Institute to rehouse their demonstration school which had been evacuated to Hertfordshire from Kensington during the war. The house was in disarray after being used by the army who had also constructed a number of air raid shelters and huts in the grounds and on the terrace. These were soon converted by the school into a dining room and classrooms, with the Scouts HQ in the shelter.
Since 2000 the house has undergone a programme of refurbishment to restore it to its former splendour.
Other Buildings
1946: Grove House Nursery (in the Pavilion on Lawrence site)
1951 and 1954: Long corridor classrooms built in 2 sections:
- 1951 (costing £9,414)
- 1954 (costing £8,181) being officially opened in 1955 by Mrs Leonard G. Montefiore.
1964: Gymnasium (costing £12,427) built next to the ‘Long Corridor’ classrooms
1968(?): Dining Room built, having originally been in army hut on the terrace
1978 - 1991: Library in Army hut on terrace (demolished in January 1999)
1984: Fire destroyed Barbara Priestman House
1986: Opening of rebuilt Barbara Priestman House
1988: October - Opening of first Macleod House by Sheila Macleod; original open-air swimming pool enclosed
1992: October - FSTC Building opened by HRH Princess Alexandra
1995: September - Opening of Sports Pavilion, with Maths Room; Maths Department moves to the Pavilion; Footbridge over Clarence Lane completed
1996: ‘Orchard’ demountable green buildings installed - called ‘Timbertops’ - to house Nursery overspill.
1997: Priestman House 2 completed
1998: March - Roberts Hall officially opened by Sheila Roberts; all weather sports courts built on Lawrence House site adjacent to the Pavilion; old Greenhouses demolished to create the site
1999: Conservatory extension to Dining Room completed
2002: December: New Macleod House Junior School officially opened
2008: New Sports Hall on Lawrence House site opened by Mr Michael Gibbins, Chairman of Governors; Long Corridor and old gymnasium demolished; construction starts on New School
2010-2011: New School opens (science laboratories, classrooms, library, ICT suite, pupil facilities)
2011: Refurbishment of FSTC to become Humanities Centre, connected to New School
Notable Alumni
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- Frieda HughesFrieda HughesFrieda Rebecca Hughes is an English poet and painter. She has published seven children's books and four poetry collections and has had many exhibitions.-Early life:...
- Nicholas HughesNicholas HughesNicholas Farrar Hughes was a fisheries biologist known as an expert in stream salmonid ecology. Hughes was the son of the American poet Sylvia Plath and English poet Ted Hughes and the younger brother of English artist and poet Frieda Hughes...
- Elizabeth JaggerElizabeth JaggerElizabeth "Lizzy" Scarlett Jagger is an English-American model and actress. She is the oldest daughter of Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall, and the paternal half-sister to Jade Jagger.-Early life and career:...
- Iris MurdochIris MurdochDame Iris Murdoch DBE was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about political and social questions of good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious...
- Leah WoodLeah WoodLeah Wood is the British daughter of Rolling Stones band member, Ronnie Wood and his wife Jo Wood.Leah is a singer and model. Leah and her band have supported David Bowie on tour and has worked as a model, appearing in various newspapers and magazines...