Ashville College

Ashville College is a co-educational independent school for both day and boarding pupils aged 3–18 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. Its headmaster, Richard Marshall, is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.

Ashville College
Address
Green Lane

Harrogate
,
North Yorkshire
,
HG2 9JP

England
Coordinates53.97386°N 1.55214°W / 53.97386; -1.55214
Information
TypeIndependent day and boarding school
MottoEsse quam videri
("To be, rather than to seem")
Religious affiliation(s)Methodist
Established1877
Department for Education URN121758 Tables
ChairmanJ Search
Acting HeadmistressElspeth Fisher
Age3 to 18
Enrolment880
Former pupilsOld Ashvillians
Websitehttp://www.ashville.co.uk
The School

It was founded in 1877 as a boarding school for boys by the United Methodist Free Church, and incorporated Elmfield College and New College, Harrogate in the 1930s. It is now open to non-Methodists and to those of non-Christian religions. The college accepted girls in 1982 and is fully co-educational. It thrives as the oldest independent school in Harrogate and owns an estate of 60 acres on the south side of the spa town.


History

In 1875 the United Methodist Free Church Assembly agreed to establish a college that promoted a sound and advanced education. A set of six committee members were appointed to search for suitable premises and thereafter became the founding fathers of the school: Alderman R. Ellis, Rev. E. Boaden, Rev. R. Chew, Rev. J. Garside, W. H. C. Hardy and Rev. K. Kirksop. Ald. Ellis found a small private school and estate called Ashville on the outskirts of Harrogate and purchased it for £5,800. Dr William Richardson was appointed as headmaster and the school opened on 17 July 1877 with 30 pupils and two masters, with school fees being £25 per annum.[1]

In 1889 the school underwent a period of expansion which began with the opening of the East Wing in order to house more boys. By 1902 the school site included a cricket pavilion, tennis courts and a gymnasium. The school's clock tower was built in 1911.

In World War I, 300 of the school's pupils were called up and 38 died in the conflict, including 8 who died in the Battle of the Somme. In 1921 a cenotaph was built, funded by the Old Boys' Association.

In the 1920s and 1930s the school underwent further expansion to include the Memorial Hall, Library, Music Rooms and an open-air swimming pool.

In 1929 Ashville purchased New College, Harrogate for £40,000 which included 27 acres of land. In 1932 the school merged with Elmfield College bringing its student population to 280 boys and making Ashville the largest private school in the north of England.

At the outbreak of World War II, Ashville was requisitioned to the Royal Air Force and the school was evacuated to The Hydro Hotel in Bowness-on-Windermere.[2] During the war 465 of the school's pupils volunteered for the forces, 59 were killed and 90 decorations were awarded to Old Ashvillians. The school did not return to its original site in Harrogate until 1946.

In 1982 girls were admitted to the school for the first time, initially only as day pupils until 1989 when the girls' boarding house was opened.

Houses

Ellis (Green), Riverdale (Red), Duckworth (Yellow), Windermere (Blue)

2018 NEASC Accreditation

In December 2018, Ashville College was officially accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). This makes it one of the few schools in the United Kingdom to hold this status.

Boarding houses

Greenholme (junior boys and girls), Briggs (senior boys), Mallinson (senior boys), Norfolk (senior girls)

Motto

Esse quam videri ("To be, rather than to seem")

Current headmaster

Richard Marshall (on compassionate leave for the 2020-2021 academic year)

Acting Headmistress

As a result of Richard Marshall having asthma and so having to shield himself as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic, as well as having recently being diagnosed with cancer, Elspeth Fisher, the school's head of pastoral care (in post since September 2004) will stand in for him as he recovers, and until the pandemic either is halted or improves to the point that it is safe for him to return to work.

Previous headmasters
  • Dr William Richardson BA LLD (1877-1889)
  • Dr John Bowick BA LLD (1890-1905)
  • Rev. Alfred Soothill (1905-1926)
  • Joseph T. Lancaster MA MLitt (1927-1957)
  • G. Ronald Southam (1957-1977)
  • David Norfolk MA (Oxon) (1977-1987)
  • Michael Crosby (1987–2003)
  • Andrew Fleck (2003–2010)
  • Mark Lauder (2010-2017)
  • Richard Marshall (September 2017 – July 2020, September 2021 onwards)
  • Elspeth Fisher (Headmistress - standing in for Richard Marshall for the 2020-2021 academic year)

Notable Old Ashvillians
gollark: 20██.
gollark: Discord is bought out by osmarks.tk after PotatOS Advanced Projects™ accidentally becomes obscenely wealthy by inventing artificial general intelligence 2022.
gollark: I can autorestart it for you!
gollark: Well, I would autoformat it.
gollark: Yes, I would only allow this if audited code was to apiorun on the osmarks.tk computing system.

References
  1. "Heritage". www.ashville.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  2. "Former wartime pupils evacuated from a boarding school 75 years ago set to return to the Lakes". The Westmorland Gazette. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  3. "Oscar nomination for Leeds filmmaker". BBC News. 27 February 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  4. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/studies-in-power-a-fair-cop-1581528.html
  5. "Save Our Boozer". Uktv.co.uk. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  6. "UKPollingReport Election Guide » Redcar". Retrieved 9 November 2011.

Bibliography
  • Booth, William (1990) A History of Ashville and The Ashvillian Society. Harrogate: The Ashvillian Society, to mark their centenary (1890–1990).


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.