Sherfield School – a brief history
Sherfield and its manor are steeped in history. Buckfield, our most imposing building, is a grand Grade ll listed Victorian manor house with 12th century medieval origins. The original tudor manor on the site, Archer Lodge, was gifted by King Henry ll to his marshal William Fitz Aldelin.
For the next few hundred years, the manor passed between noble families, including the Marquis of Winchester and later the Duke of Wellington, until 1572 when it was divided and sold as two lots. Archer Lodge sadly burnt down 300 years after it was built.
The current building was built in 1870 by Lord Benjamin Taylor, an influential and powerful man, and incorporates some of the bricks from the original Archer Lodge. When the house was encased and extended in 1897, the building became known as Sherfield Manor.
The entrance hall and surrounding rooms are impressive. The sweeping carved wooden staircase was created in situ by Italian craftsmen and the intricately moulded ceilings are rumoured to be from a Florentine palace.
The residents of the manor included Mr Paynton Piggott Stainsby Conant Esquire (1770 – 1862) a powerful landowner, Mr Bramstone Stance Esquire who was very involved with the local church and paid towards its upkeep and Mr Charles Lethbridge, who was a local sheriff, and his family.
In 1908, John and Emily Liddell moved into the manor and were much loved by the locals. They hosted the last ever Court Leet. Their eldest son, Aidan Liddell, was a First World War hero as a captain in charge of a machine gun section, seeing action on the frontline with The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. He became only the third airman to be awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery.
The walled garden was also at the peak of its floral magnificence in the early 1900’s and was a popular attraction for visitors to the mansion.
In 1926 the house was sold to the 13th Earl of Winchelsea and passed to his son on the Earl’s death the following year. The Manor played its part in the Second World War when it was turned into a military hospital.
In 1947, the house became North Foreland Lodge, an independent girls’ boarding school and the following years saw a number of other wings and additions to the school to provide further teaching and residential facilities.
In 2004, Sherfield reopened under the management of GEMS, Global Education Management Systems.
In 2023, the school was sold to EiM (Education in Motion) who own the school today. EiM is a family of schools with a clear purpose; to empower pupils with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to make a positive difference for people, society, and the planet. EiM has a global presence around the world with over 11,000 pupils.
The School has increased from 73 pupils to around 600 today.