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Bernard Sunley (4 November 1910 – 20 November 1964) was a British property developer, and the founder of Bernard Sunley & Sons.
Born at
No. 138, November 18, 1931
ancestry.co.uk, accessed 22 November 2022 They had two daughters and a son. From earth-moving, Sunley moved into the open-cast mining business. In 1940, he founded Bernard Sunley & Sons. During the Second World War he built over 100 airfields, and in 1942 he purchased the business of Blackwood Hodge, then a supplier of agricultural machinery and later a successful plant hire and sale business. He subsequently "ranked alongside the most successful property developers of the 1950s property boom". Sunley campaigned as a Conservative Party candidate for Ealing West in 1945, but was unsuccessful. Sunley established the Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation in 1960 with a pledge of £300,000 worth of shares. As of 2011, it had made grants of more than £92 million. He died in 1964. His son, John Sunley (died 2011) was a property developer and philanthropist. His grandson is
Bernard Sunley (4 November 1910 – 20 November 1964) was a British property developer, and the founder of Bernard Sunley & Sons.
Born at Catford
Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green (ward), Rushey Green and Catford South Ward (electoral subdivi ...
in south-east London, he was the son of John Sunley, a florist and fruiterer, and was educated at St Ann's School in Hanwell
Hanwell () is a town in the London Borough of Ealing. It is about west of Ealing Broadway and had a population of 28,768 as of 2011. It is the westernmost location of the London post town.
Hanwell is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. St ...
in Ealing
Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
. After leaving school at the age of fourteen, he hired a horse and cart to move earth, and then went into the landscape gardening business. One of his first major contracts was re-laying the pitch at Highbury for Arsenal FC
The Arsenal Football Club, commonly known as simply Arsenal, is a professional football club based in Islington, North London, England. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. In domestic football, Arsenal h ...
.
In November 1931, at Holy Trinity Church, Southall
Southall () is a large suburban town in West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns.
It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...
, Sunley married Mary Goddard, a daughter of William Goddard, a farmer, of Waxlow Farm, Southall.''Marriages solemnized at the parish church of Holy Trinity Southall in the County of Middlesex''No. 138, November 18, 1931
ancestry.co.uk, accessed 22 November 2022 They had two daughters and a son. From earth-moving, Sunley moved into the open-cast mining business. In 1940, he founded Bernard Sunley & Sons. During the Second World War he built over 100 airfields, and in 1942 he purchased the business of Blackwood Hodge, then a supplier of agricultural machinery and later a successful plant hire and sale business. He subsequently "ranked alongside the most successful property developers of the 1950s property boom". Sunley campaigned as a Conservative Party candidate for Ealing West in 1945, but was unsuccessful. Sunley established the Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation in 1960 with a pledge of £300,000 worth of shares. As of 2011, it had made grants of more than £92 million. He died in 1964. His son, John Sunley (died 2011) was a property developer and philanthropist. His grandson is
Richard Tice
Richard James Sunley Tice (born 13 September 1964) is a British businessman and politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Boston and Skegness and Deputy Leader of Reform UK since 2024, having previously been the chairman of the p ...
, a businessman and deputy leader of Reform UK
Reform UK is a right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. Nigel Farage has been Leader of Reform UK and Richard Tice deputy leader since 2024. It has five members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Commons and one membe ...
.
Bernard Sunley Hall, named after him, is a hall of residence
A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm), also known as a hall of residence, a residence hall (often abbreviated to halls), or a hostel, is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential qu ...
for Imperial College London
Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a Public university, public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a Al ...
students at 40–44 Evelyn Gardens.
See also
* City Tower, Manchester (formerly Sunley House)References
1910 births 1964 deaths British company founders People from Catford Sunley family 20th-century British businesspeople {{UK-business-bio-1910s-stub