Saint Ronan's School 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 Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

co-educational preparatory school for boys and girls from 3 to 13 years located in

Hawkhurst Hawkhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The village is located close to the border with East Sussex, around south-east of Royal Tunbridge Wells and within the High Weald Area of Outstanding N ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England. It currently has about 440 pupils, the majority of them day pupils, although boarding is available from Monday night through to Thursday night for all pupils from Year 4 upwards. The present headmaster is Joe Lewis. The school was named Tatler UK Prep School of the Year in 2017-2018 and TES Prep School of the Year 2021.

History

The school was founded in 1883 and was originally located in

Worthing Worthing ( ) is a seaside town and borough in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 113,094 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Br ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

. During the Second World War, the school was evacuated to Bicton Park near

Exmouth Exmouth is a harbor, port town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and seaside resort situated on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe, southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the List of settl ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, but afterwards moved to its present location in Tongswood House. The house was remodelled in the late 19th century for William Cotterill, owner c. 1868 to 1892, of a mercantile family from Birmingham. Tongswood later belonged to Charles Eugene Gunther (died 1931), head of the Liebig Extract of Meat Company which later became known as OXO, who was High Sheriff of Kent in 1926. Sir Richard Vassar-Smith, 3rd Baronet, was headmaster from 1957 to 1971, and was succeeded by his son, Sir John Vassar-Smith, 4th Baronet, who was headmaster of the school until his retirement in 1997.

Notable alumni

Former pupils of Saint Ronan's School include: * Lindsay Anderson, film and theatre director * Julian Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith, colonial administrator and hereditary peer * Christopher Battiscombe, diplomat *

Richard Rodney Bennett Sir Richard Rodney Bennett (29 March 193624 December 2012) was an English composer and pianist. He was noted for his musical versatility, drawing from such sources as jazz, romanticism, and avant-garde; and for his use of twelve-tone technique ...

, composer *

Bill Benyon Sir William Richard Benyon ( Shelley; 17 January 1930 – 2 May 2014) was a British Conservative Party politician, Berkshire landowner and high sheriff. Life and career Benyon was the eldest of four sons of Vice-Admiral Richard Shelley (1 ...

, Member of Parliament * Mark Bonham Carter, Baron Bonham-Carter, Member of Parliament and publisher * Raymond Bonham Carter, banker *

Robert Bray Robert E. Bray (October 23, 1917 – March 7, 1983) was an American film and television actor known for playing the forest ranger Corey Stuart in the CBS series '' Lassie'', He also starred in '' Stagecoach West'' and as Mike Hammer in th ...

, soldier * Richard Bridgeman, 7th Earl of Bradford, peer and restaurateur *

Nick Brown Nicholas Hugh Brown (born 13 June 1950), known as Nick Brown, is a British former politician and trade unionist who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Newcastle upon Tyne East between 1983 and 2024. He represented the Labour Party unti ...

, Member of Parliament * Patrick Chichester, 8th Marquess of Donegall, peer * Iain Cochrane, 15th Earl of Dundonald, peer * Sampson Collins, cricket journalist * Peter Dickinson, author and poet * Frank Gardner, journalist (BBC Security Correspondent) * Michael Grylls, Member of Parliament * Patrick Hadley, composer * David Heathcoat-Amory, Member of Parliament *

Osbert Lancaster Sir Osbert Lancaster (4 August 1908 – 27 July 1986) was an English cartoonist, architectural historian, stage designer and author. He was known for his cartoons in the British press, and for his lifelong work to inform the general publi ...

, cartoonist * Laddie Lucas,

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officer, left-handed golfer, author and Member of Parliament *

Donald Maclean (spy) Donald Duart Maclean (; 25 May 1913 – 6 March 1983) was a British diplomat and Soviet double agent who participated in the Cambridge Five spy ring. After being recruited by a Soviet agent as an undergraduate student, Maclean entered the civi ...

* Christopher Makins, 2nd Baron Sherfield, peer, Anglo-American diplomat, foreign policy expert, and author *

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, art dealer *

Airey Neave Lieutenant Colonel Airey Middleton Sheffield Neave, () (23 January 1916 – 30 March 1979) was a British soldier, lawyer and Member of Parliament (MP) from 1953 until his assassination in 1979. During the Second World War he was the first ...

, British soldier, lawyer and Member of Parliament * Francis Newall, 2nd Baron Newall, peer * Martin Nourse, Lord Justice of Appeal of England and Wales * John Palmer, 4th Earl of Selborne, British peer, ecological expert, and businessman * Matthew Parish, olympic rower * Thomas Ponsonby, 3rd Baron Ponsonby of Shulbrede, Chairman of the

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, Labour Chief Whip 1982-1990 *

John Raven John Earle Raven (13 December 1914 – 5 March 1980) was an English classical scholar, notable for his work on pre-Socratic philosophy, and amateur botanist. His wife, Faith, inherited the 35,000 acre Ardtornish Estate in Argyllshire, Scotland ...

Classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

and

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

''John Raven by his Friends'', edited by John Lipscomb and R. W. David. Published privately by Faith Raven, 1981, , page 12 * General Sir Charles Richardson, Chief Royal Engineer and

Master-General of the Ordnance The Master-General of the Ordnance (MGO) was a very senior British military position from 1415 to 2013 (except 1855–1895 and 1939–1958) with some changes to the name, usually held by a serving general. The Master-General of the Ordnance was ...

* E. Clive Rouse, archaeologist * Charles Saumarez Smith, British cultural historian specialising in the history of art, design and architecture * Mark Shand,

travel writer The genre of travel literature or travelogue encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. History Early examples of travel literature include the '' Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'' (generally considered ...

, conservationist and brother to

Queen Camilla Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East ...

* Philip Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'Isle, peer * James Simpson, naval officer and explorer * Michael Whinney, Church of England bishop * Bella Maclean, Actor

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Ronan's School Preparatory schools in Kent Hawkhurst Church of England private schools in the Diocese of Rochester Educational institutions established in 1883 1883 establishments in England