Rhubarb 2024

ST EDWARD’S

The Golden Era of St Edward’s

“In 1925 when I became Warden, no building had been possible between 1881 and 1925 except the Sanitorium in 1922 and the Memorial Buildings in 1925.The playing fields amounted to 19.5 acres, and we had no Boat House or boats.Today in 1954 we have classrooms, Science Laboratories,110 acres of freehold land, Boat House, boats and cottages, Squash Courts, Subway, three new Boys’ Boarding Houses, the Chapel – Kitchen-Dining Hall and Big School all enlarged, seven Masters’ Houses, five cottages and the Memorial Library.” What he failed to mention was the purchase of Apsley Paddox, a new Armoury, the first custom-made Tuck Shop, new stained glass windows in the Chapel, the Warden’s House extension, the Workblock, new changing rooms, the fourth generation of cricket pavilions, a gallery in Big School (which Kendall himself funded), isolation annexes to the Sanitorium, hot water and central heating throughout the School and new entrance gates. Governors who had appointed him and the teachers he had inherited. He saw the School through the Second World War, during which time he invited the staff and boys of St Bede’s School, Eastbourne to evacuate to Oxford and share the St Edward’s facilities for five very happy years, but at the same time experienced the loss, in action, of 152 OSE and one teacher, which affected him deeply. He had overseen 3,129 boys, three-fifths of the School Roll, at that point outstayed three architects, the original

Taken at face value, the School Kendall took over in 1925 was not in the best of shape. It had a reputation both locally and nationally as ‘a dying school’. Pupil numbers were 242 that summer, and the boys were sleeping in every corner of the School (20 were even off site altogether), they were feeding in four different dining places, worshipping in three different ‘chapels’ and a temporary marquee on the side of the Chapel served as a changing room (which finally collapsed during a snowstorm in 1926). Most of the School was still lacking electricity, hot water and the overall facilities were very limited.Teaching was conducted in a variety of parts of the School with Big School being the main centre.Very quickly once Kendall arrived, seven huts were imported from Port Meadow from the former WW1 aerodrome for classrooms and laboratories – these became known as ‘Hutland’ and would survive until the 1960s. The School was still recovering from the effects of losing 118 OSE and three teachers in the Great War, a devastating number for a small school.

FEATURE

By the time Kendall left,Teddies had been transformed and this was his final report to the Governors in 1954:

Over the next few pages we outline a few of the impressive developments overseen by Kendall over the years.

Aerial photo 1933.

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