Benenden School

Hemsted Park c. 1870

The grounds which the school now occupies are known as Hemsted Park. The earliest available records show the land in the possession of Odo, Earl of Kent, the man believed to have commissioned the Bayeux Tapestry, having been given it—among much other property in the county—by his half-brother William the Conqueror.[1]

The first property on the site was a house built by Robert of Hemsted in 1216. In the late 14th century, Richard II granted the manor to William of Guldeford. Elizabeth I visited Thomas Guldeford at the house and he was knighted by her at Rye a few days later.[1]

In 1718 the property was sold to Admiral Sir John Norris, the commander-in-chief of George II's navy. He did a lot of work landscaping the property, forming much of the park as it is now.[1]

Thomas Hallett Hodges bought the house in 1786. He reduced the size of the building and filled in the moat that had until that point encircled it. He also created the lake in the grounds. The Elizabethan property was demolished in 1860 following the acquisition of the estate by Lord Cranbrook. He commissioned the building of a new house, the extant Hemsted House, employing David Brandon, president of the Royal Institute of British Architects to design the new mansion. The house, which featured a prominent tower and was described as having "alarming vitality" was subsequently remodelled in 1912 by Herbert Cescinsky at the behest of its new owner, newspaper magnate and later Lord Rothermere, Harold Harmsworth. The remodelling saw the "vitality" toned down and the upper levels of the tower removed.[1] It is now listed at grade II.[2]

The school was founded in 1923 by three teachers from Wycombe Abbey, Christine Sheldon CBE, Anne Hindle MBE and Kathleen Bird, who aimed to create a "happy school with personal integrity and service to others always in mind, where everyone would be given the chance to follow her own bent". It hence maintains sister school ties with Wycombe Abbey, as well as Godstowe Preparatory School, High Wycombe, and St Leonards School.

In July 1923 the first council meeting of the new school was held and 24 girls were registered. The new school had a temporary home in Bickley for the first term while the three founders set about finding a new permanent site, requiring at least 70 bedrooms and large grounds. In January 1924 Hemsted Park, near Benenden village in Kent, was leased to the Founders and the school was named Benenden School, to avoid confusion with Hemel Hempstead. In March 1924 The Benenden School (Kent) Limited prospectus was issued at £10 each; five shares entitled the holder to give a nomination to the school. Every parent was encouraged to pay a year's fees in advance. In September 1924 there were 126 girls on the school roll and in October 1924 the new Benenden School purchased Hemsted House for £20,000.

1927 was an important year for Benenden with the roll reaching 200. The first general inspection was made and Benenden was recognised as 'efficient'. The Seniors' Association was established and the school magazine was inaugurated.

As the school grew, so more boarding houses were established or constructed: Norris House in 1924, Medway and Marshall in 1925, Echyngham in 1930 and Guldeford in 1936. The dining room was also built in 1936 with the school hall following in 1938.

The school was evacuated to Newquay in 1940. The school moved to the Hotel Bristol in Newquay, Cornwall, with Christine Sheldon and Kathleen Bird, two of the founders. Anne Hindle stayed at Benenden to look after the estate. She persuaded the Ministry of Health to use Benenden as a military hospital. On 3 August 1944, Capitaine Jean Maridor, a Free French pilot, died saving the school buildings and military hospital from being struck by a German V-1 flying bomb.

The founders retired in 1954 and Elizabeth Clarke CVO became Headmistress. In 1963 Princess Anne and Princess Basma of Jordan became pupils at Benenden. Janet Allen became Headmistress in 1976. The Jubilee Wing was opened by Janet Allen and Kathleen Bird in 1977.

Gillian duCharme became Headmistress in 1985. The new Guldeford House opened the following year. The 1987 hurricane hit Benenden hard and over 250 trees were lost in the parkland. Further expansion to the school began with the opening of the new science and medical wing, Leelands, in 1988. SPLASH opened in 1990. Two further sixth-form houses opened in 1993 (Limes and Oaks).

The 75th anniversary of the school was celebrated in 1998–99 with a service at St Paul's Cathedral and a programme of special events for Seniors at Benenden, St James's Palace and other London venues. The book Benenden: A Great Company by David Souden was published. The school play, written for the occasion, A Great Company was performed at Her Majesty's Theatre, Haymarket.

Claire Oulton, Head of St Catherine's Bramley and a graduate from Somerville College, Oxford, was appointed Headmistress in 2000. In 2001 the Clarke Centre with the Eugenia Leung Library was completed. Norris House was redeveloped in 2003, creating new study bedrooms. The school dining room and cloisters were refurbished. The "new stage" theatre fundraising campaign was launched.

The new theatre was opened by Helena Bonham Carter in 2007 and Grease was its first production in December that year. The Seniors' Window was added to the chapel as part of a refurbishment and rededication. The following year the eco-classroom, a totally self-sustaining building, opened in the Victorian Water Gardens. A new cafe was added to the dining room in 2010.

The Benenden Science Centre was opened by the Princess Royal on 10 October 2012. The Leelands building was refurbished and became a classroom block for Humanities subjects. The new All-Weather Pitch and Pavilion was opened by television personality Davina McCall on 10 September 2016. Primarily for Lacrosse and Hockey, the new facility allows girls to train in all weather and in the mornings and evenings. After their first season training on the new pitch, Benenden's 1st lacrosse team won the National Schools Championships.

Main school sports include, lacrosse, netball, rounders and tennis. Girls often play these at county and sometimes national levels; a current senior England lacrosse player was introduced as head of lacrosse in 2008. Other activities include hockey, fencing, badminton, volleyball, swimming, golf, riding, judo, tae kwondo, trampolining, rounders, football, aerobics, athletics, rugby sevens (Kent Girls Under-18 Champions 2009) and squash. Tours abroad are occasionally organised.