Thomas Delarue was a co-educational special secondary boarding school in

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Malling, it had an estimated population ...

, Kent, England that was established in 1955 and closed in 1989. It was run by The Spastics Society and catered for pupils with

cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sens ...

History

Thomas Delarue School was established by The National Spastics Society in

, Kent in 1955. It initially occupied Dene Park House, a converted mansion house and World War 2 battle school in Hadlow parish (). The school was a boarding school. The first headmaster was a Mr Davies, In 1959, The De La Rue Company donated 1,000

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

to the school instead of sending out

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s. A purpose-built school located on Starvecrow Hill () was opened on 19 September 1963. On 9 June 1964, The

Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the city of Edinburgh in Scotland, was a substantive title that has been created three times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not prod ...

visited the school to perform the official opening ceremony. Mr Davies retired in July 1964. In 1966, the school had 87 pupils. The next head teacher retired at the end of the Spring Term, 1967. His name was Mr Tudor. In 1979, a film was made about the school by members of Sevenoaks School. It was made to show the work of the Sevenoaks Voluntary Service and to give an insight into working with people with disabilities. Thomas Delarue School closed in 1989.

References

External links

{{authority control Schools in Tonbridge Defunct schools in Kent Boarding schools in Kent Co-educational boarding schools Educational institutions established in 1955 Educational institutions disestablished in 1989 1955 establishments in England 1989 disestablishments in England Cerebral palsy organizations Defunct special schools in England