Lochinver House School
Encyclopedia
Lochinver House School is a preparatory independent school
for boys aged between 4 and 13 located in the town of Potters Bar
, in Hertfordshire
in England
.
called Lochinver. The house itself (which would have been pulled down but for the war) was being used by a pharmaceutical firm as a warehouse for Nivea Cream and other products. It was in a bad state of repair, having suffered from both natural decay and bomb damage. Bayley's good friend Willoughby Salter was asked to run the Potters Bar school and immediately set about getting it ready for pupils. The school opened in late September with around 30 boys and the following year the number was up to about 100.
Following Salter's retirement in 1961, Michael Timpson took over the mastership and was in control until 1968. He was succeeded by William Herbert, whose mastership ran until 1970 at which time Richard Armitage became headmaster. Armitage oversaw the development of the Sports Hall in 1980, music centre in 1985 and Salter Block in 1988. The school's playing field, Green Meadow, was purchased in 1980, converted for use and now offers football and rugby pitches plus facilities for cricket and athletics. Armitage retired in 1989 as the longest serving headmaster in the school's history: a record he still holds to this day.
What followed were two years of instability with Bill Sargeant and David Fuller taking over the mastership for one year apiece. Fuller left the job in 1991 when he moved to Retford Oaks School in Nottinghamshire and was succeeded by Patrick Atkinson.
Atkinson oversaw some major changes during his mastership such as the creation of the Dining Hall and Theatre complex in 1998. The nineties were also a strong decade for sport with yearly football tours to Germany, plus return tournaments at Green Meadow. When Atkinson left in 2002 to become headmaster at Beechwood Park School he was replaced by Jeremy Gear, who is the current headmaster.
Under Gear's mastership the school has seen its first international rugby tour in 2008 to South Africa plus he has had the privilege of overseeing the Diamond Jubilee in 2007.
Like many preparatory schools, Lochinver prepares its pupils for some of the best local public schools. Pupils from Lochinver tend to go to such establishments as St Albans School
, Haileybury and Imperial Service College
and Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
.
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
for boys aged between 4 and 13 located in the town of Potters Bar
Potters Bar
Potters Bar is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England, located north of Central London. In 2001 it had a population of 21,618....
, in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
in 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...
.
History
Lochinver House School was founded in 1947 by Harold Bayley who had been headmaster at Aylesford House School. When the lease for Aylesford House ran out he purchased a run down house in Potters BarPotters Bar
Potters Bar is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England, located north of Central London. In 2001 it had a population of 21,618....
called Lochinver. The house itself (which would have been pulled down but for the war) was being used by a pharmaceutical firm as a warehouse for Nivea Cream and other products. It was in a bad state of repair, having suffered from both natural decay and bomb damage. Bayley's good friend Willoughby Salter was asked to run the Potters Bar school and immediately set about getting it ready for pupils. The school opened in late September with around 30 boys and the following year the number was up to about 100.
Following Salter's retirement in 1961, Michael Timpson took over the mastership and was in control until 1968. He was succeeded by William Herbert, whose mastership ran until 1970 at which time Richard Armitage became headmaster. Armitage oversaw the development of the Sports Hall in 1980, music centre in 1985 and Salter Block in 1988. The school's playing field, Green Meadow, was purchased in 1980, converted for use and now offers football and rugby pitches plus facilities for cricket and athletics. Armitage retired in 1989 as the longest serving headmaster in the school's history: a record he still holds to this day.
What followed were two years of instability with Bill Sargeant and David Fuller taking over the mastership for one year apiece. Fuller left the job in 1991 when he moved to Retford Oaks School in Nottinghamshire and was succeeded by Patrick Atkinson.
Atkinson oversaw some major changes during his mastership such as the creation of the Dining Hall and Theatre complex in 1998. The nineties were also a strong decade for sport with yearly football tours to Germany, plus return tournaments at Green Meadow. When Atkinson left in 2002 to become headmaster at Beechwood Park School he was replaced by Jeremy Gear, who is the current headmaster.
Under Gear's mastership the school has seen its first international rugby tour in 2008 to South Africa plus he has had the privilege of overseeing the Diamond Jubilee in 2007.
Like many preparatory schools, Lochinver prepares its pupils for some of the best local public schools. Pupils from Lochinver tend to go to such establishments as St Albans School
St Albans School (Hertfordshire)
St Albans School is an independent school in the city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, in the East of England. Entry before Sixth Form is for boys only, and co-educational thereafter. Founded in 948 by Wulsin , St Albans School is not only the oldest school in Hertfordshire but also one of the oldest...
, Haileybury and Imperial Service College
Haileybury and Imperial Service College
Haileybury and Imperial Service College, , is a prestigious British independent school founded in 1862. The school is located at Hertford Heath, near Hertford, from central London, on of parkland occupied until 1858 by the East India College...
and Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
The Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School is a British independent school for boys aged 4–19. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and of the Haileybury Group....
.
Headmasters
- 1947-61 Willoughby Salter
- 1961-68 Michael Timpson
- 1968-70 William Herbert
- 1970-89 Richard Armitage
- 1989-90 Bill Sargeant
- 1990-91 David Fuller
- 1991-02 Patrick Atkinson
- 2002–11 Jeremy Gear
- 2011- Ben Walker
Notable former pupils
- Stephen ManganStephen ManganStephen Mangan is an English actor, best known for his roles as Guy Secretan in the television series Green Wing, Dan Moody in I'm Alan Partridge and as Holistic Detective Dirk Gently in the 2010 BBC adaptation of Douglas Adams' book Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, as well as Sean Lincoln...
(b. 1972), actor, TV presenter and main star of The Hunt for Tony BlairThe Hunt for Tony BlairThe Hunt for Tony Blair is a one-off episode of The Comic Strip Presents..., a British television comedy, which aired on Channel 4 on 14 October 2011. The 60 minute film was written by Peter Richardson and Pete Richens and presented in the style of a 1950s film noir... - John McCarthy (journalist)John McCarthy (journalist)John Patrick McCarthy CBE is a British journalist, writer and broadcaster, and one of the hostages in the Lebanon hostage crisis...
(b. 1956), former British hostage, journalist and radio presenter - Nick Walker (cricketer)Nick Walker (cricketer)Nick Walker is a former English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler who has played for Leicestershire since 2006....
(b. 1984), former cricketer
School Houses
The School Houses of Lochinver are named after the founder and two early headmasters.- Bayley
- Salter
- Timpson