Hanford School

School

50°53′57″N 2°13′19″W / 50.89926°N 2.22206°W / 50.89926; -2.22206InformationReligious affiliation(s)Church of EnglandEstablished1947Local authorityDorsetDepartment for Education URN113911 TablesHead teacherHilary PhillipsGenderGirlsAge7 to 13Enrolmentc. 100Grounds45 acres (18 ha)Websitehttps://www.hanfordschool.co.uk

Hanford School is a girls' boarding preparatory school located in Hanford, Child Okeford, Dorset, England, established in 1947 and located in a grade II* listed house built in 1604 by Sir Robert Seymer.

History

Hanford House was built in Jacobean style in 1604, or 1620,^[1] and completed in 1623,^[2] 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,^[3] and the small Gothic chapel was built in 1650. Country Life magazine 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."^[4]

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.^[5] In 1959, the school was taken over by their daughter, Sarah. In 1960, the building was listed as grade II*,^[6] ten days after the nearby Church of St Michael and All Angels.^[7] After retiring as headmistress in 2003, she handed the school over to the Hanford School Charitable Trust in 2004, which now runs it.^[1]

Boarding pupils are split into two houses – Fan’s for year 8 pupils and Main House for all other years.

Headmasters and Mistresses

The Reverend Clifford and Enid Canning (1947 - 1959)
Sarah Canning (1959 - 2003)
Michael and Ann Sharp (1980s - 2003)
Robert and Kate Mackenzie Johnston (1994 - 2003)
Nigel and Sarah Mackay (2003 - 2014)
Rory and George Johnston (2014 - 2023)
Mrs Hilary Phillips (2023 - to present)

Notable staff

Sarah Butt, captain of the England lacrosse national team^[8]

Notable alumni

Amanda Foreman
Millie Mackintosh Made in Chelsea
Santa Montefiore
Candida Moss
Kate Rock, Baroness Rock
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson
Dame Emma Kirkby

References

^ ^a ^b "Hanford School". The Good Schools Guide. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ "Hanford House". Great Houses. Dorsetshire.com. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ Burke, Bernhard (1852). "Seymer of Hanford". A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain & Ireland for 1852, page 1216. Colburn and Co. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ Day, Michael (31 May 2002). "Hanford (St. Michael)". Dorset Churches. Michael Day. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
^ "New prospectus shows Hanford's unique approach to learning". This is Dorset. 23 July 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ "Hanford School, Hanford". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ "Church of St Michael and All Angels, Hanford". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ "My School Sport: Sarah Butt". The Telegraph – Sport. 23 January 2001. Retrieved 5 May 2011.