St Michael's Prep School, Otford
St Michael's Prep School is a coeducational preparatory school in Otford, located in a 90-acre (360,000 m2) site in the North Downs, Kent, England.
| St Michael's Prep School | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Address | |
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Otford Court , , TN14 5SA England | |
| Information | |
| Type | Preparatory school (United Kingdom) |
| Motto | Perseverantia, Sapientia, Gratia |
| Established | 1872 |
| Founder | Arthur Tooth |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Chair of Governors | Rashid Chinchanwala |
| Head | Nik Pears |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Age | 2 to 13 |
| Houses | Dover, Leeds, Rochester, Windsor |
| Website | http://www.stmichaels.kent.sch.uk |
History
St Michael's was founded at Hatcham in 1872 by the Reverend Arthur Tooth as a school and home for the sons of the clergy, naval and military officers as well as professionals who had suffered bereavement or fallen on hard times. The school now has more than 460 pupils.
Historic abuse allegations
In 2005, actor John Hurt stated in an interview with the Independent on Sunday that when he was a pupil at the school he was abused by Donald Cormack, then Senior Master of the school; he later became Head Teacher until his retirement in 1981.[1] Hurt said that the experience affected him "hugely". According to the interviewer, he and Hurt had a mutual friend who had earlier made the same allegations to him.[2]
Notable alumni
Teachers
Pupils
- Hubert Chesshyre, Clarenceux King of Arms, Secretary of the Order of the Garter, child sex abuser[3]
- John Hurt, actor[4]
- Roy Martin Haines, historian
- Tom Bosworth - represented his country in race walking in the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
- Lizzy Yarnold - silver medallist in the 2011 Bob Skeleton Junior World Championships,[5] 2014 winter Olympic gold medalist, 2018 winter Olympic gold medalist
Further reading
- Sally Maria Jones, St Michael's School, Otford: Recollections, Observations, and Celebrations. The Story of St Michael's School, Otford, Since its Foundation in Hatcham, New Cross, in 1872 (Sevenoaks: Amherst, 2004; 255pp., with illustrations and portraits; ISBN 1-903637-22-8)
References
- History of St Michael's School, accessed 21 March 2010. (Confirming details of Cormack's career.) Archived 1 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- Byrnes, Sholto (16 October 2005). "John Hurt: I was abused, too". The Independent. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
- Jamie Doward (30 March 2019). "Honours system under scrutiny after sex abuser kept title for years". The Observer. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
- Parkinson, David (22 January 2019). "John Hurt: 10 essential films". British Film Institute. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
- http://www.fibt.com/index.php?id=63&event=26351&L=0
