West Buckland School

West Buckland School is an English public or independent school, a member of the HMC, and is located on the outskirts of the village of West Buckland on the edge of Exmoor, 8 miles east of Barnstaple, Devon. It comprises a senior school, preparatory school and a nursery with approximately 700 pupils of which about 100 board, 40% of which are from abroad. The day pupils are drawn from a wide area of North Devon and many use the large and complex school bussing operation.

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 boys of farmers and the middle class. The foundation stone of the Gothic style buildings was laid in October 1860 by Earl Fortescue, 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. Finally in 1976 when direct grants were abolished it became a fully independent school.

Houses

Brereton, Courtenay, Fortescue, Grenville

Motto

Read and Reap

Notable alumni

• R. F. Delderfield (playwright and novelist). His book and television series, To Serve Them All My Days, was closely based on West Buckland School.

• Brian Aldiss (author, especially of science fiction)

• Jonathan Edwards (triple jump world record holder, Olympic Games gold medalist and world champion)

• Victor Ubogu (former England rugby player)
• Stephen Ojomoh (former Bath and England rugby player)
• John Ashworth (Former Director of London School of Economics)

External links

• School website. *main index page
• Old West Buckland Association
• Indpendent Schools Inspectorate report 2004

References

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