Established 1878 Chair of Governors Rhoddy Swire Address Worcester WR6 6DD, UK Number of students 300 Founded 1878 | Headmaster Will Lockett DfE number 885/6005 Phone +44 1299 896275 Founder Miss Mitchell Staff 38 | |
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Type Independent school
Preparatory School
Day and boarding Location Abberley
Worcestershire
WR6 6DD
England Similar RGS the Grange, RGS Worcester, Abberley Parochial VC Prim, King's Worcester, The Chantry School | ||
Abberley Hall School is a coeducational preparatory day and boarding school in the village of Abberley, Worcestershire, England. Straddled between Worcester and Tenbury, it educates around 300 pupils.
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History
The school began in 1878 as the Dame School in Blackheath, Kent. In 1896, it became a private school and was named Lindisfarne. The school was moved to Abberley in 1916, and the property was purchased in 1921 by Gilbert Ashton, a former pupil of Lindisfarne, who took over as headmaster and renamed it Abberley Hall. The school became a trust in 1958, and is now managed by a Board of Governors, as a UK Registered Charity (no. 1088863). Pupils come from a variety of backgrounds, including families and service personnel living and working abroad, professionals from the Birmingham and Worcester areas, and traditional farming families. The pre-prep and nursery serve a more local area.
Campus
The campus comprises Abberley Hall, a Grade II* listed building and its gardens and grounds, which are also listed as Grade II on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. The grounds also contain the Grade II* listed Abberley Clock Tower which can be seen as far away as Clent hill, and which was the setting for the children's book by Gene Kemp, The Clock Tower Ghost.
Curriculum
Pupils follow a curriculum that prepares them for entrance into public schools (independent schools), taking Common Entrance, Winchester Entrance or Scholarship exams. Class sizes are small, averaging 11 pupils. Most subjects have their own dedicated classrooms and there are two science laboratories and specialist facilities for computing, DT, music and PE. The majority of pupils continue their education at Malvern College, Shrewsbury School, Kings Worcester, Cheltenham College, Rugby School and Malvern St James. The school also provides for individual pupils with special needs including: Dyslexia or Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD), and Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD).
All pupils take part in the major sports, an Astroturf pitch provides opportunities for hockey, golf, croquet, riding, fishing, archery, shooting, Ricochet and climbing. The school has an indoor swimming pool.
International activities
The school has its own chalet in the French Alps where the pupils spend two three-week periods whilst at Abberley, totally immersed into the French language and culture. The chalet is also used for skiing holidays.
Notable former pupils
Captain Stephen Beattie VC, naval officer, leader of the commando raid on the docks at St Nazaire in 1942