Beeston History
The Hall
Parts of Beeston Hall date back to Tudor times, but was more recently under the long-standing ownership of the Ketton-Cremer family. The last in line, Robert Wyndham Ketton-Cremer, was born at Beeston Hall before moving to the nearby ‘family seat’, Felbrigg Hall, which he subsequently gifted to the National Trust.
Our school’s story was almost over before it began when, in 1940, a German bomber, limping home after a raid, dropped an explosive in the vicinity, narrowly missing the main building. The only noteworthy damage was to a mulberry tree, subsequently bricked-up by Italian POWs. (This can still be seen today, with a little foraging.)
The house was the property of Flying Officer, Richard Ketton-Cremer (the squire’s younger brother), who was sadly killed in active service in 1941. It was to remain empty for a number of years.
1948 – 1960
In 1948, a Mr Thomas Tapping saw potential in the old building and set up his school, springing from his headmastership of ‘The Sanctuary School’ in Little Walsingham (which, in turn, had derived from the 1939 evacuation of boys from Quainton Hall School).
Tapping and his wife ran Beeston from 1948 until 1958, when he decided to put it on the market. Its 1959 ‘For Sale’ notice in the Times Educational Supplement caught the eye of Martin Swindells. In those days, the majority of prep schools were privately owned, rendering buying an expensive business, but Beeston was for sale ‘leasehold’ and therefore an interesting possibility.
Martin Swindells and his wife, Peggy, eventually took over the running of the school in 1960. Even before arriving, the Swindells’ objective was to turn the school into a non-profit charitable trust but, in 1960, Beeston did not meet the criteria. At that time, the school was almost entirely undeveloped as an educational institution and remained, essentially, a country house.
1967 – 1978
Following improvements to both pupil numbers and the school’s facilities, on July 17th, 1967, the school became an Incorporated Trust. Following Mr. Ketton-Cremer’s death, and his gift of Felbrigg Hall to the National Trust, tenants of the rest of the estate were given the opportunity to acquire the freehold of their property. Thus, the Trust acquired Beeston Hall.
In the early 70s, the wind of liberalism was sweeping through the prep school world. Happily, in 1975, the first girl Beestonians entered the school roll.
1986 – 2009
In 1986, the Swindells retired and John Elder was appointed Headmaster. Under the leadership of John and his wife, Hanneke, Beeston flourished and, in 1998, Beeston’s fourth Headmaster, Innes MacAskill, took the reins.
Innes and his wife, Sandy, continued to take Beeston forward to the point where it became one of the top prep schools in the country. In 2009 Robin Gainher, arrived at Beeston from Cranleigh Prep. Robin and his wife, Ali, quickly began to make their mark and build on the success of their predecessors.
2016
In September, 2016, Fred de Falbe and his wife, Juliet, were appointed to begin the next chapter in our school’s history.
It began with the launching of the Beeston Foundation, a year later, and the commission of a 25-year master-plan. By evolving and adapting, Beeston Hall has more than fulfilled Robert Ketton-Cremer’s wishes for its future prosperity.
Beeston’s Pre-Prep first opened its doors in 2016, complete with purpose-built classrooms, a separate outside play/learning area, and the opportunity to explore the whole campus – not least our much-loved woods.
It still feels like home
All at Beeston, from staff to children to parents, are bound by a common loyalty towards it. A remarkable 25% of the parent body are OBs (Old Beestonians), and many have forged fascinating and successful careers, universally citing the grounding received at Beeston as a driver in their success.
Each new year adds new chapters to the Beeston story. Yet, one common refrain remains, whenever old friends come to visit: it still feels like home.
