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Churcher's College is an
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...
, fee-charging day school for girls and boys, founded in 1722. The Senior School (ages 11–18) is in the
market town A market town is a Human settlement, settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular marketplace, market; this distinguished it from a village or ...
of Petersfield,
Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
with the Junior School and Nursery (ages 2 years, 9 months–11) in nearby
Liphook Liphook is a large village in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 4.1 miles (6.6 km) west of Haslemere, bypassed by the A3 road, and lies on the Hampshire/West Sussex/ Surrey borders. It is in the civil parish of Br ...
. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC). The College was founded in Petersfield in the 1720s by the will of Richard Churcher to educate local boys in the skills needed for service in the East India Company. The headmaster is Simon Williams who replaced Geoffrey Buttle in September 2004.
Alumni Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...
are known as Old Churcherians or OCs.


History

The school was founded under the will of Richard Churcher in 1722. Churcher was a wealthy local
philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
who had made his fortune through interests in the British East India Company. His will, dated 1722, decreed that the College was to educate: Under the terms of the will, Churcher's College was created as a
non-denominational A non-denominational person or organization is one that does not follow (or is not restricted to) any particular or specific religious denomination. Overview The term has been used in the context of various faiths including Jainism, Baháʼí Fait ...
foundation, a status it has kept to this day. The original school, built in 1729, is in College Street. The school became increasingly popular due to its successes, and in 1881 moved to its present location in Ramshill, accommodating 150 boys. From 1946 to 1964 Broadlands, opposite the college grounds in Ramshill, was the preparatory school for Churcher's. It was Grade II listed in 1949. For much of the 20th century Churcher's College operated as a voluntary aided
grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school, ...
. In 1979, Hampshire County Council decided to cease to maintain the college, which became an independent fee-paying school. The school's expanding population (by the mid-20th century the school educated some 400 boys, of whom about a quarter boarded in three separate houses: Mount House, Ramshill House and School house) has necessitated the addition of a number of modern buildings alongside the original 1881 buildings. Girls were first admitted to the Sixth Form in 1980, and the school became fully co-educational in 1988. Reflecting its naval history, the college's
houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...
are named after the naval heroes Drake, Grenville, Nelson and
Rodney Rodney may refer to: People * Rodney (name) * Rodney (wrestler), American professional wrestler Places ;Australia * Electoral district of Rodney, a former electoral district in Victoria * Rodney County, Queensland ;Canada * Rodney, Ontario, a ...
, with the later addition of
Collingwood Collingwood, meaning "wood of disputed ownership", may refer to: Educational institutions * Collingwood College, Victoria, an Australian state Prep to Year 12 school * Collingwood College, Durham, college of Durham University, England * Collingw ...
. In 1993 the school purchased
Moreton House School Moreton may refer to: People Given name * Moreton John Wheatley (1837–1916), British Army officer and Bailiff of the Royal Parks Surname * Alice Bertha Moreton (1901–1977), English sculptor, draughtsman and artist * Andrew Moreton, a ps ...
in Petersfield, which became Churcher's College Junior School. Like the senior school before it, the junior school is very successful, and soon outgrew its premises. Following an unsuccessful attempt to relocate in Petersfield, the school eventually purchased an existing school campus in Liphook (Littlefield's School), which from 2003 became the junior school's new site.


Sport and outdoor pursuits

The boys compete in
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...
,
field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shootin ...
and
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...
, whilst the girls play
netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...
,
field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shootin ...
and rounders. The College was the first school to affiliate to the
Hampshire RFU Hampshire Rugby Football Union is the governing body for rugby union in the county of Hampshire, England. It represent clubs sides not just from Hampshire but also from the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands, who take part in many of the comp ...
in 1924. OC Frank Guy was responsible for the founding of local rugby union club
Petersfield R.F.C. Petersfield Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in the town of Petersfield, Hampshire, England. The men's first XV currently compete in London 3 South West - a league at the eighth tier of the English rugby union system - following ...
in 1927. In 2015, Churcher's won the NatWest Schools Cup under-18 Vase with 13-5 victory over
SEEVIC College USP College (Unified Seevic Palmer's College, previously known as Seevic and Palmer's Colleges Group) is a large general further education college in Essex, England. It was established in August 2017 from the merger of Palmer's College in Gra ...
, the first Hampshire school to do so. The school has equestrianism,
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 ...
,
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball c ...
, squash, swimming and athletics teams and events and competes in contests such as the Ten Tors, which they won in both 2014 and 2015, the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Marathon, and the Charlton Chase and Butser Hill Challenge events. There are Combined Cadet Force and Duke of Edinburgh Award programmes, as well as regular World Challenge and First Challenge expeditions.


Notable alumni

* Michael Auger (born 1990), member of the band
Collabro Collabro were a UK-based musical theatre group and winners of the eighth series of ''Britain's Got Talent'' in 2014. The group consisted of Michael Auger, Jamie Lambert, Matthew Pagan and Thomas J. Redgrave. Richard Hadfield left the band in J ...
which took the top prize in the TV show Britain’s Got Talent, 2014 *
Brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the latter part ...
Henry Baxter CBE GM, Commander of the Ulster Defence Regiment 1973–6; awarded the
George Medal The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically by civilians, or in circ ...
1957 for removing an IRA bomb in Armagh * Charles Beeson (1957–2021), TV director * Dr
Geoffrey Boxshall Geoffrey Allan Boxshall FRS (born 13 June 1950) is a British zoologist, and Merit researcher at the Natural History Museum, working primarily on copepods. Early life Son of Jack Boxshall a Canadian bank manager and Sybil Boxshall (née Baker) ...
FRS,
Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more ...
1974 to date * Rhidian Brook, writer and broadcaster * Arthur Brough, actor ('' Are You Being Served?'') * Rt Rev Harry Carpenter,
Bishop of Oxford The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. The current bishop is Steven Croft, following the confirmation of his elect ...
1955–70 * Calum Chambers, footballer for Aston Villa F.C. and England *
Howard Drake Howard Ronald Drake (born 13 August 1956) is a British former diplomat who was High Commissioner to Canada from 2013 to 2017. He retired from the Diplomatic Service in August 2017. Education Drake was educated at Churcher's College. Caree ...
OBE, High Commissioner to Jamaica from 2010 to 2013, and Ambassador to Chile from 2005 to 2009 * Sir Jeremy Farrar, Professor of Tropical Medicine,
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the world's second-oldest university in contin ...
and Director of the
Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glax ...
* Tim Footman, writer and quiz show regular * Reg Gammon, artist * Jim Hetherington, former England rugby union player * Simon Ings, writer * Edward Kelsey, actor ('' The Archers'' – Joe Grundy, '' DangerMouse'') *
Alex Lawther Alexander Jonathan Lawther (born 4 May 1995) is an English actor. He made his professional acting debut originating the role of John Blakemore in Sir David Hare's '' South Downs'' in the West End. He made his feature film debut playing a young ...
, actor ('' The Imitation Game'', '' The End of the F***ing World'') * Rear Adm Philip Mathias MBE, Director since 2010 of the Strategic Defence and Security Review (Nuclear), and President in 2004 of the Admiralty Interview Board * John Peters (RAF officer), pilot shot down in first Gulf War on 17 January 1991 *
Stuart Piggott Stuart Ernest Piggott, (28 May 1910 – 23 September 1996) was a British archaeologist, best known for his work on prehistoric Wessex. Early life Piggott was born in Petersfield, Hampshire, the son of G. H. O. Piggott, and was educated ...
(1910–1996), archaeologist * Fiona Pocock, rugby union player for England * Barrie Roberts (1939–2007), author, folk singer, freelance journalist and criminal lawyer * Tim Rodber (born 1969), former England rugby union player * Tiny Rowland (1917–1998), businessman and chairman of the Lonrho conglomerate 1962–1993 * Tim Spanton (born 1957), journalist * Rear Adm Chris Snow, Flag Officer Sea Training since February 2009, and commanded HMS ''Ocean'' from 2005 to 2006 *
Graham Stratford Graham and Graeme may refer to: People * Graham (given name), an English-language given name * Graham (surname), an English-language surname * Graeme (surname), an English-language surname * Graham (musician) (born 1979), Burmese singer * Clan G ...
, cattle breeder and mayor of Alton * Robert Tronson, TV and film director, including police dramas and '' The Darling Buds of May''


References


Further reading

*Atcheson, Nathaniel & Robert, ''The history of Churcher's College, Petersfield, Hants: with a sketch of the life of Mr. Richard Churcher, the founder''. 1823
Google -BookInternet Archive
J Butterworth & Son. New York Public Library. {{Schools in Hampshire Educational institutions established in 1722 Petersfield Independent schools in Hampshire 1722 establishments in England Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference