St Margarets School St Helens - Hastings

[anabel_m_bedard]

i attended st margarets back in the 1950's. i lived at merivale. i remember miss maxted the matron. she was followed by miss van waller.the stables were known as the cottage. miss batty lived there.miss batty was very tempremental and had a nasty little jack russell terrier named timmy. her maid olive looked after the dog. miss batty wore an assortment of incredible hats. loads of flowers, a flower salad as it were.
the two iranian girls were aideh and mercedes diba-tavakoli. i saw their parents once. they were very expensively dressed and rather aloof.
the boys school next door was hurst court. they kept turkeys and we could hear them gobbling away when we walked from merivale to st margarets.
i remember a lot of people, judy bryden,bridget dunn,vicki macdonnell,sally watson,tessa wylie,annette godwin-williams,joy eerdman,greta lutmer and many more.
the view from merivale was really stectacular, you could see for miles and miles.
i found life there very stressful and was glad to leave/escape.

[Geoff]

Any one know where this school was located? I am interested to write a bit for the history section if we can find out any information.

I found this advert amongst my collection of old publications.

[Richard]

this one from an eBay search
date 1955 ?

[Geoff]

Interesting! I think my scan was from 1932 or thereabouts. So the school must have lasted some time. Any ideas where it was?

[Richard]

In the original post "Hurst Court" was mentioned as being next door.


Published on the 11 June 2008
Hastings & St leonards Observer
Hurst Court danger

More desperately needs to be done to secure Hurst Court from trespassers, following an arson attack on the 19th century building last week, a resident has said.
The derelict building on The Ridge is currently subject to a complicated planning application and appeal by Millward Designer Homes, and judicial review into plans by local residents.
But neighbouring Chowns Hill resident Anthony Chantler said this week that the council and the developer have done little to secure the site from intruders, which include young people using it as a place to hang out.
Four fire crews from Bohemia, The Ridge and Battle were called to a blaze at Hurst Court at 8pm on June 2, and police are now investigating after youths were seen leaving the site shortly afterwards.
Fire crew manager Graham Geer said: "Fire fighters were potentially put at risk because it was a derelict building with lots of holes in the floors."

Built in 1863, the imposing building was one of the first purpose built preparatory schools in the country. It was later taken over by Jesuits, followed by Hastings Youth Trust in the 1960s, who used it as a residential centre.
It has since been sold on several times. Hastings Local Plan 2004 stated that land surrounding the building could only be developed for housing if Hurst Court was restored to its former glory.
Original planning applications stuck to the advice of the local plan but never progressed beyond the planning stage, and the 2007 application put in by Millward requested the demolition of the building, to replace it with 55 houses and apartments.

[Richard]

I know it isn't St Margarets and Geoff already has "Hurst Court" pictured in his 'Old Photo Gallery' but I thought I would add the following:
Administrative history:
Hurst Court was built as a school for Dr Thomas Reed in 1863 and opened, as The College, Ore, the following year. The school became known as Hurst Court in 1866 and moved to Bournemouth in 1884, when the building became a Jesuit College for two years before reverting to its original use as a boys' preparatory school
Hurst Court was requisitioned on 24 May 1940 and accommodation was provided for the staff and 70 staff and pupils at Wrekin College at Wellington in Shropshire, where the school remained until its return to Ore in January 1946
The school closed in December 1968, and in 1970 the building was acquired by the Hastings Youth Trust, which had been established in 1967 to provide a residential conference and training centre in the town; much of its funds had been raised by sponsored walks. The centre closed at the end of the 1980s and in 1994 the trustees were involved in the sale of the building, the funds to be made available to provide grants for youth work in Hastings
These documents, which were given to the office anonymously, are the only records relating to the school held at ESRO. Their end coincides with the retirement of Richard J S Curtis, a master at the school since 1917 and headmaster from 1933
A summary history of Hurst Court written by Mrs Elizabeth Montgomery, a trustee of the Hastings Youth Trust, has been added as AMS6331/2

[Richard]

sorry for such a long-winded reply.
Have found the relevant section on these forums (doh!)
It was (St. Margaret's) located at 314 The Ridge.
Now almost certainly a new housing development on the site.

http://www.hastingsforum.net/cgi-bin/si ... 1190050620

[Geoff]

Doh from both of us, I should have spotted that. Thanks as always Richard

[hazelandrob]

Hi, I attended St Margarets 1950 -57 and really in terested in catching up with any girls in my class. I was excited to read your notes on our school and hope you see this Annabel. I live in NZ but am travelling around south England at the moment. My name was Hazel Jennings, and I must have been in the same class as you and remember the 2 Persians girls well. I remember all the same people, and would love tohear from any of them, especially Bridget Dunn whom I was friendly with. My contact in England is: 07970570862 till 5th July.

[Anthea]

I was at St Margaret's from 1953 to 1959. Fascinating to see these posts. My brother was at Hurst Court from 1953 to 1958 and our father was there 1926-1932.
The two Persian girls were sisters. The smaller was the oldest. Her name was Heidi Tavakoli and her younger and taller sister was Mercedes. They were notprincesses; as far as I know, but they were wealthy and their mother knew Farah Diba, the Shah's second wife. Mercedes has gone on to have two very wealthy husbands in America and is a well known patron of the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. She has led a colourful life. I know the name Hazel Jennings. I was in the same form as Jane Harden, Sally Willcox, Jenny Griffiths, Lesley Coldwell, Rosalie, Mary Murrell etc etc. I remember Joy Eardman was in the form above me. She lives near me in Somerset. I am still in touch with my form and recently saw Sally (née Willcox.). Am going to stay with Jane Harden in October.
I was not happy at St Margaret's as Miss Batty was certainly temperamental and frequently did not turn up on time for the lessons she taught. She was a very fine teacher, however. Matron Keeling (or Keating) was the matron I best remember and Miss Maxted and Miss Van Waller. It is true that we sometimes had to wash in the water from our hot water bottles, due to lack of water from time to time. The plumbing left a lot to be desired! Timmy, Miss Batty's dog was not a Jack Russell; he was a fox terrier and he used to sit in the dining room and shiver. A difficult dog. The food was awful for the most part with some good meals a few times a week. Yes, I remember the tea dances and smiled at the recollection of the person who slipped on the polished floor because she was wearing new shoes. Miss Godfrey was an excellent dance teacher. I liked Miss Russell Leonard, the PE teacher we had. She was terrific. I lived in Southern California from 1988 to 2013 and had a happy second marriage for 16 years. Moved back to England with my dog, Jasper in October 2013 to be near my 2 daughters and 7 grandchildren. My name was Anthea Roxburgh. Very flattering to find someone who remembers me and who wanted news. Hope she reads this.