Bedford Greenacre Independent School is a

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

independent day school located in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

, England. The school was formally created in May 2021 from a merger of Rushmoor School and St Andrew's School.

History

Rushmoor School

Rushmoor School was founded in the early 1910s and was originally a privately run school based in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. It educated children of the ages of 8–13. In 1918, the school moved from London to a site on Shakespeare Road in Bedford. In 1965, the owner announced her retirement and the closure of the school, however, a group of parents and friends persuaded her to allow them to take over the running of the school and thus, the school became 'Rushmoor School Ltd', a charitable trust administered by a

board of governors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organi ...

. The school then expanded considerably; it became partially co-educational, accepting children of the ages of 3–16.

St Andrew's School

St Andrews School was founded in 1896 as a school for the daughters of gentlemen. Located on Kimbolton Road in Bedford, before the federation and merger the school consisted of a nursery, reception class, junior school and senior school educating girls aged 3–16 and boys aged 3–9.

Federation and merger

In September 2013 Rushmoor School and St Andrew's School entered into a federation. Both schools retained their own identity and governing body, but shared resources and had one principal. In September 2016 both schools opened a combined

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

. In early 2014, the schools released plans to move to a combined site on the edge of Bedford. The new site utilises the current sports field for development. The plans will see girls and boys educated on the same site in a

Diamond school Diamond school, diamond model, diamond shape and diamond structure are similar terms that apply to a type of independent school in the UK that combines both single-sex and coeducational teaching in the same organisation. Typically, the establishment ...

system. In May 2021 the two schools formally merged under the new name of 'Bedford Greenacre Independent School'. The merged school is expected to relocate to the new site in 2022. A combined nursery school will be retained on the former St Andrews School site on Kimbolton Road.

References

External links

Bedford Greenacre Independent School official website
{{authority control Independent schools in the Borough of Bedford Schools in Bedford Diamond schools