West Buckland School is an

independent school An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British En ...

West Buckland West Buckland is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Taunton in the Somerset West and Taunton district. The parish has a population of 1,189. History In 904, certain lands were the basis of a charter to Asse ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

in the English public school tradition. It comprises a senior school, preparatory school, and a nursery. It is a relatively high performing school in Devon. It was one of eight schools shortlisted for 'Boarding School of the Year' in the TES Independent School Awards 2019, a category won by

Cottesmore School Cottesmore is a preparatory school in the United Kingdom, founded in 1894. It is full boarding. History Cottesmore was founded by Geoffrey Davison Brown in 1894 in Hove, East Sussex. He named the school after Cottesmore, Rutland, where he wa ...

. The school facilitates 640 pupils of whom around 140

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; 16% of students are international. The day pupils and weekly boarders are drawn from a wide area of

North Devon North Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. North Devon Council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lyn ...

and beyond, many using the large school bussing operation in collaboration with local coach operators.

History

West Buckland School was founded as the Devon County School in 1858 by Rev. J.L. Brereton to provide a public school education for sons of farmers and the middle class. The foundation stone of the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

(?)-style buildings was laid in October 1860 by

Earl Fortescue Earl Fortescue is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was created in 1789 for Hugh Fortescue, 3rd Baron Fortescue (1753–1841), a member of parliament for Beaumaris and Lord-Lieutenant of Devon. History The Earls Fortescue descend ...

, who had provided land and other support for the school. Under the first headmaster, J.H. Thompson, numbers rose to 150 by 1876 and then declined as a consequence of agricultural depression and competition from other schools. In the winter of 1912/13 the school was renamed West Buckland School. During the 1950s it received increasing support from the Devon County Educational authority and became a direct grant school. In 1976, when direct grants were abolished, it finally became a fully independent school.

Expansion and development

Since 2008, the school has expanded its facilities, that year saw the completion of a sports hall behind the nineteenth century complex. In April 2010, the ''150 Building'' opened, a combination of buildings containing modern art, design and technology workshops; a theatre which replaced an old theatre; an assembly space for the prep school and a quadrangle. In Autumn 2015, the '

Michael Morpurgo Sir Michael Andrew Bridge Morpurgo (''né'' Bridge; 5 October 1943) is an English book author, poet, playwright, and librettist who is known best for children's novels such as '' War Horse'' (1982). His work is noted for its "magical storytelli ...

' library opened. In the building there is also the head of sixth form office; an English and economics classroom; the school library and a work area with computers for pupils. Also opened in 2015 was Parkers, a sixth form boarding house for boys and girls, with a downstairs lounge and kitchen for the use of day pupils as well. West Buckland School has a four-house system, the houses being: *Brereton *Courtenay (named after the Earls of Devon) *Fortescue *Grenville (named after the ancient Grenville family, lords of the manor of

Bideford Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, south-west England. It is the main town of the Torridge local government district. Toponymy In ancient records Bideford is recorded as ''Bedeford'', ''By ...

) Numerous inter-house competitions are held throughout the school year in music, drama and sport culminating in Sports Day held during the final week of the summer term. Points are awarded according to how well houses do in each competition. Whichever house has amassed the largest number of points after Sports' Day wins the coveted Southcomb Shield. The Grenville enjoyed an eight year winning streak keeping the shield from 2013 to 2020. After a one year hiatus due to Covid, the Courtenay won the competition in 2022. The origins of the shield are detailed in an extract from ''West Buckland School 1858–1958. The First Hundred Years. A Review of a Century recorded by Friends and Pupils.''

On July 31, 1917, there fell in action, E.H. Southcomb, then a Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment. He was for many years a very cheerful member of the Brereton House, no great athlete but always ready to play his part to the best of his ability. On leaving West Buckland he went, by his father's wish, to Shrewsbury for two years, and then entered a bank, where he remained till war broke out. On his death it was found that he had left a legacy (£10 10s. 0d.) to the Sports Fund of his first school, and somewhat late it has at last been decided to perpetuate his memory by a Shield which will be held by the House which obtains the chief athletic cups in the School year, which starts in September. For this purpose, each of the Challenge Cups carries a definite mark. The allocation of marks for each cup was not an easy matter and even now the values may require re-adjustment in 1924. The Headmaster formed a committee consisting of Messrs. Corless, Taylor and Walton, and the list as issued by them will hold good at any rate till July, 1924. The winning House will hold the shield, which will be hung over their dining tables, and will also take the right of the line on ceremonial parades.

Boarding

There are currently three main boarding houses at West Buckland: *Bamfylde – situated on the preparatory school site, and catering for girls aged 11 to 16. (named after the Bamfylde family, Barons Poltimore, historic lords of the manor of nearby

North Molton North Molton is a village, parish and former manor in North Devon, England. The population of the parish in 2001 was 1,047, decreasing to 721 in the 2011 census. An electoral ward with the same name also exists. The ward population at the cen ...

) *Boyer House – for boys aged 11 to 16 *Parkers – for sixth form boys and girls aged 16 to 18 Each of the boarding houses has its own houseparent.

Fees

Fees per term in 2019: Day Fees: £2,690-£5,020; Boarding Fees: £8,115-£11,220.

Alumni

Brian Aldiss Brian Wilson Aldiss (; 18 August 1925 – 19 August 2017) was an English writer, artist, and anthology editor, best known for science fiction novels and short stories. His byline reads either Brian W. Aldiss or simply Brian Aldiss, except for o ...

(1925–2017), author of

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

and general fiction * John Ashworth (born 1940), former Director of the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...

R. F. Delderfield Ronald Frederick Delderfield (12 February 1912 – 24 June 1972) was an English novelist and dramatist, some of whose works have been adapted for television and film. Biography Childhood in London and Surrey Ronald Frederick Delderfield ...

(1912–1972), playwright and novelist. His book '' To Serve Them All My Days'' was set at a school based on West Buckland School. * Jonathan Edwards (born 1966),

triple jump The triple jump, sometimes referred to as the hop, step and jump or the hop, skip and jump, is a track and field event, similar to the long jump. As a group, the two events are referred to as the "horizontal jumps". The competitor runs down th ...

world record holder, Olympic Games gold medalist and presenter *

Harold Gimblett Harold Gimblett (19 October 1914 – 30 March 1978) was a cricketer who played for Somerset and England. He was known for his fast scoring as an opening batsman and for the much-repeated story of his debut. In a book first published in 198 ...

(1914–1978), former Somerset and England cricket player *

Bertie Hill Albert "Bertie" Edwin Hill (7 February 1927 – 5 August 2005) was a British equestrian who competed at three Olympic Games. After serving in the Home Guard during the Second World War, Hill became an amateur jockey in ...

(1927–2005),

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

, Olympic Games gold medalist *

Harold Hilton Harold Horsfall Hilton (12 January 1869 – 5 May 1942) was an English amateur golfer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He won The Open Championship twice, The Amateur Championship four times, and the U.S. Amateur Championship once. B ...

(1869–1942),

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

, won

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...

twice and member of the

World Golf Hall of Fame The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site honors both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 go ...

Harry Packer Harry Packer (9 September 1868 – 25 May 1946) was an English-born international rugby union prop who played club rugby for Newport and was capped seven times for Wales. Packer had a long association with rugby, as a player, selector, officia ...

(1868-1946), former Newport and Wales rugby player, who managed the British Isles team on their 1924 tour of South Africa *

Steve Ojomoh Stephen Oziegebe Ojomoh, known as Steve Ojomoh (born 25 May 1970 in Benin City), is a Nigerian-born English former rugby union footballer and a current coach. He played as a flanker. Club career Ojomoh played for Moseley, Bath, and Gloucester ...

(born 1970), former Bath and England rugby player * Craig and

Jamie Overton Jamie Overton (born 10 April 1994) is an English cricketer who plays for Surrey County Cricket Club. He is a right-arm fast bowler who also bats right-handed. He made his debut for Somerset in the 2012 Clydesdale Bank 40 against Surrey. He mad ...

(twins, born 1994), current Somerset and England Lions cricket players *

Victor Ubogu Victor Eriakpo Ubogu (born 8 September 1964) is a former Bath and England rugby union player. Arriving in the UK from Lagos, Nigeria in 1977, he attended West Buckland School in Devon he received the school's top award, the Fortescue Medal. ...

(born 1964), former Bath and England rugby player *

Tim Wonnacott Timothy Wonnacott (born 12 March 1951) is an English chartered auctioneer, chartered surveyor, antiques expert, narrator, and a television presenter. He was previously a director of Sotheby's, one of the world's oldest auction houses. He is bes ...

(born 1953), antiques expert and television presenter *

George Friend George Andrew Jordan Friend (born 19 October 1987) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a defender (association football), defender for club Birmingham City F.C., Birmingham City. In the 2012–13 season, F ...

, English professional footballer * General Satyawant Mallanna Shrinagesh (1903-1977), Chief of the Defence Staff Indian Army, Governor of Assam * Claudia Huckle, British operatic contralto

Notes

References

*Coates, Berwick: ''West Buckland School: The Millennium Book'' (Halsgrove, 2000) *Edmunds, Jon.: ''A History of West Buckland School'' (Aycliffe Press, 1983) *Honey, J.R. de S.: ''Tom Brown's Universe, The Development of the Victorian Public School'' (pp 47–103) (Millington, 1977)

External links

West Buckland School websiteOld West Buckland Association
{{authority control 1858 establishments in the United Kingdom Educational institutions established in 1858 Independent schools in Devon Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference