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The sad news that Fosse Bank School in Hildenborough is closing at the end of the month has come as a shock to parents and the wider community. It is the end of more than a century-and-a-half in this corner of Kent, as it was established in Tonbridge in 1866.
It then moved to Hildenborough in 2004, but has been struggling to cope with falling pupil numbers for some time. There had been hope a buyer would be the shot in the arm the school needed, but that interest has been withdrawn.
Acting head Shiralee Davies told KentLive the school had intended to do “everything possible” to ensure Fosse Bank School continued with new owners. “We are all devastated that we have failed to do this,” she said.
Read more: Parents devastated after Fosse Bank School in Tonbridge announces it will close in weeks
When the school closes its doors for the last time on March 24, it will be a terrible day for the 28 staff, the 90 or so children, their parents and the association, which described the school as “unique”.
The school’s balance sheet for August 31, 2021, shows Fosse Bank School had total funds of £26,579, a decline on the previous year’s £34,520.
Tonbridge History Society, in its newsletter in 2010 when it had acquired some photographs for The Fosse Bank archive, said the school used to be on Quarry Hill in Tonbridge. It said: “The school, Tonbridge’s longest lasting private school, was founded as Tonbridge Girls’ College in 1892. Until 1938 it occupied the home of its founder, Madame Vetterli King.
“Her home was a house called Fosse Bank, next to Blair House in the High Street, now replaced by an office block, 182 High Street. When the school expanded into larger premises on Quarry Hill, it took the name Fosse Bank with it.”
It moved to Mountains Country House in Noble Tree Road in Hildenborough in 2004. The school has said of the country house: “We are very proud of our imposing and quirky building which is set in 28 acres of land”.
Ambitious plans were withdrawn
There had been ambitious plans to expand the Grade II school and build 76 homes in the grounds, which came in a planning application from the school dated October 19, 2021. They were aimed at boosting the school’s ailing coffers.
It hoped to double its roll of pupils under the expansion. Planning papers show Fosse Bank School has been operating in an increasingly precarious financial position during the years leading up to the plans. Its future business plan had to ensure its survival.
The upgrade to the school included a new multi-purpose hall, reception building and eco classroom, new children’s play areas, an extension of car parking at Stables Nursery and at the front of the main school building, plus a conversion to create more nursery space.
The new homes, which it was estimated would have brought around 182 people to live there, would have associated access roads and their own play areas. Although, as planning documents show, there was some support for the plans, this was far outweighed by a groundswell of objections by neighbours.
The application stated at the time there was a total pupil roll of up to 120 at the independent school and early years facility for children aged two to 11. A children’s day care nursery operated separately at Stables Nursery.
Objections to the plans included the development of green belt, light pollution and an increase in traffic. There were concerns about “selling off the grounds of a listed building” and building “a housing estate in the back garden”.
Other concerns included risk of flooding, local infrastructure not being able to cope including GP surgeries and local schools, and harm to the rural environment. But the vision was never to become a reality and the plans were withdrawn some time after May 20, last year.
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