Lady Hawkins' School is a 11-16

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

in Kington,

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

. The headteacher is Allen Brace. The school is now housed in modern buildings erected in 1962 and 1973, with other buildings erected more recently, almost all of which have been refurbished between 1990 and 1995 to meet the challenges and demands of recent curriculum developments. The original 1600s building is now in use as a private residence.

History

The school was founded on 29 September 1632 with funding from the estate of Lady Margaret Hawkins, widow of Sir John Hawkins, a slaver. She came from a Herefordfordshire family, being the daughter of Charles Vaughan. She was married to Hawkins for a few years in the 1590s before he died in the Caribbean. Lady Hawkins died in 1619, leaving £800 'for the purchasing of lands or tenements of a yearly value of forty pounds for and towards the perpetual maintenance of a learned and choice preaching divine, the Master, to keep a free school in Kington, in the County of Herefordshire, and of a learned and discreet Usher under him, for the instructing and teaching of youths and children in literature and good education.' Captain Anthony Lewis, servant to Lady Hawkins and acting executor of the will, purchased School Farm,

Upper Hergest Upper Hergest is a Hamlet (place), hamlet located in the civil parish of Kington Rural, Kington, in the county of Herefordshire, England. It is located approximately 2 miles west of the town of Kington, Herefordshire, Kington and lies close to th ...

, in 1622 to produce the necessary forty pounds a year for running the school. He paid £26 13s 4d for a piece of ground in Kington on which the school would be built. Lewis contracted John Abel of Sarnesfield to build it. John Abel, who was Carpenter to King Charles I, was to provide the materials and was paid £240 for his work. The sixth form was one of the smallest in Herefordshire and was threatened with closure in 2006; however, it remained open until 2019 when it finally closed. The school has a tradition on visiting the nearby parish church, St. Mary's, to give thanks for its foundation and all those who have served in it over three and a half centuries.

School library

Among the possessions of the school are books deposited at

Hereford Cathedral Library Hereford Cathedral Library is a working Christian library, theological lending and reference library located in Hereford Cathedral, Hereford, England; it also holds books and manuscripts of major importance to the history of the Counties of Eng ...

, including a volume of theological commentary printed by Shakespeare´s associate Richard Field (1561–1624). This volume contains a letter which appears to be addressed to

Anne Hathaway Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. List of awards and nominations received by Anne Hathaway, Her accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime ...

. The letter formed part of the binding for two works by Johann Piscator which were bound together. The school has also deposited documents at Herefordshire Archive and Records Centre.

Notable former pupils

Leslie Law Leslie Law MBE (born 5 May 1965) is a British eventer, who won the individual gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympic Games. He started riding at age 10, competing with his brother, and participated in his first accredited event in 1982. He attend ...

, Former British Olympic

eventer Eventing (also known as three-day eventing or horse trials) is an equestrian event where the same horse and rider combination compete against other competitors across the three disciplines of dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. This ...

. *

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer, songwriter, and activist. Born in Hereford and raised in Lyonshall, Goulding began writing songs at the age of 15. She released her debut single " Under the Sheets" through ...

, Music artist. *

Jessica Raine Jessica Raine (née Lloyd; born 20 May 1982) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles as Jenny Lee in the television series ''Call the Midwife'' (2012–2014) and Verity Lambert in the television film ''An Adventure in Space and T ...

, Actress.

Links and Guides

{{authority control Secondary schools in Herefordshire Kington, Herefordshire Academies in Herefordshire