Sibford School is a British

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 school in Sibford Ferris, west of

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshir ...

in north Oxfordshire, linked with the

Religious Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

. The school has both day and boarding pupils between the ages of 3 and 18. It is one of seven Quaker schools in England.

History and overview

Sibford School was founded in 1842 as a

boarding school for the children of 'disowned' Quakers - those who had married outside the Society of Friends - as their children were barred from entering Ackworth School. It later accepted children from practising Quaker families. The school was originally based in Walford Manor in the centre of Sibford Ferris, which had been remodeled in the 17th century. The Sibfords had a long association with the Quaker movement, although locally Quakers were still a dissenting minority in an area dominated by

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

landowners. It opened with 26 boys and 22 girls and the first recorded pupil was nine-year-old Lucy Endall, who entered the school on 16 January 1842. Richard Routh was the first headmaster and remained in post until 1880. Sibford School initially occupied 18 acres of land and had a strong agricultural bias. The boys worked part-time on the farm while the girls did household duties. In this way it was possible to reduce fees to parents, which were adjusted according to means. The school expanded to a site to the south of the village with the opening of The Hill building by

Elizabeth Cadbury Dame Elizabeth Mary Cadbury ( Taylor; 24 June 1858 – 4 December 1951) was a British activist and philanthropist. Her husband was George Cadbury, the chocolate manufacturer. Early life Born in Peckham Rye, Southwark, London, Middlesex, she wa ...

in 1930. It was on this site that all future building projects took place, including several boarding houses, the science block, the dining hall, sports hall, an art and music building, swimming pool and climbing wall. The Junior School, originally called Orchard Close, for primary school aged pupils, opened in 1989.

The School today

Today the school accommodates both boarders and day pupils, of all faiths and none, and in September 2021 had more than 420 pupils. It is set in more than of grounds surrounded by the

Cotswold The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Jura ...

countryside. The school comprises three divisions of pupils: the Junior School for those aged 3–11; the Senior School for those aged 11–16; and the

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 ...

for those aged 16–18.

Independent Schools Inspectorate

The school was assessed by the ISI in December 2021, and awarded the top 'Excellent' rating in both the quality of education offered and personal development for students. The marking is the highest possible, and is equivalent to the award of an 'Outstanding' assessment in the state sector by OFSTED.

Notable former pupils

* Warrulan (circa 1835–1855) – an Aboriginal Australian, brought to England in 1845 Old scholars form the Sibford Old Scholars Association (SOSA). * Charley Boorman * Sir John Burgh *

Paul Eddington Paul Clark Eddington (18 June 1927 – 4 November 1995) was an English actor best known for playing Jerry Leadbetter in the television sitcom '' The Good Life'' (1975–78) and politician Jim Hacker in the sitcom '' Yes Minister'' (1980–84) ...

Elizabeth Jolley Monica Elizabeth Jolley AO (4 June 1923 – 13 February 2007) was an English-born Australian writer who settled in Western Australia in the late 1950s and forged an illustrious literary career there. She was 53 when her first book was publishe ...

* Joseph Coles Kirby *

Ollie Locke Oliver Locke is a British television personality and actor from Southampton, England, known for appearing in E4's constructed reality series '' Made in Chelsea''. His mother is former BBC Radio Solent DJ Sarah Locke. Career Whilst on '' Made ...

Guy Ritchie Guy Stuart Ritchie (born 10 September 1968) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter. His work includes British gangster films, and the ''Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes'' films starring Robert Downey Jr. Ritchi ...

* Beth Tanenhaus Winsten * James Rooke

Headteachers

*Richard Routh (1842–1880) *Robert Oddie (1880–1906) *James Harrod (1906–1930) *Arthur Johnstone (1930–1956) *Hugh Maw (1956–1962) *Jonas Fielding (1962–1972) *Kenneth Greaves (1972–1980) *Jim Graham (1980–1989) *

John Dunston John Herbert Dunston FRSA (born 1952, London) was the head of Leighton Park School and Sibford School, both English Quaker schools. John Dunston studied Modern Foreign Languages at the University of Cambridge. He then undertook teacher training ...

(1990–1996) *Sue Freestone (1997–2004) *Michael Goodwin (2004–2016) *Toby Spence (2016–present)

References

External links

Sibford School website
{{Authority control Educational institutions established in 1842 Quaker schools in England Co-educational boarding schools Independent schools in Oxfordshire *