Wakefield Independent School
Created | Updated Mar 26, 2006
Wakefield Independent School
A History of the School
Wakefield Independent School, in Nostell near the city of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, was founded in 1980, partly as a result of the closure of the Tutorial School.
At the same time, the state school at Wragby also closed. It was part of the Nostel Estate, and so the Lord St. Oswald agreed to lease the property to the new project.
More property was needed, and it became apparent that Chapelthorpe Hall may be available. In September, Wakefield Independent School opened with the two sites at Chapelthorpe Hall and at Wragby.
Many of the staff of the former school were keen to take part in the venture, and Mrs Margaret Milner was appointed as the first Head Mistress, with Mrs Muriel Ford as the Head of the Junior and Infants' Department.
The school has steadily grown in the last few decades. The Nostell Centre opened in 1995, and the school came together on one campus in 1998, after the opening of the Nostell Rectory as part of the school, and the departure from Chapelthorpe.
The school recently celebrated its 25th Anniversary, in 2005.