Hampshire Chronicle | News, sport & leisure from Winchester, Eastleigh and Chandler's Ford

City prep school shuts after 90 years

From the archive, first published Monday 18th Jul 2005.

THE final lessons were being taught this week at a Winchester prep school which is closing after 90 years.

Nethercliffe School, in Hatherley Road, Fulflood, closed yesterday (Thursday), following a decision by the board in February.

Head teacher, Gordon Whitfield, stated that rising costs and falling numbers had forced the move.

"I'm very sad indeed that it's ended this way," he added.

Mr Whitfield, 64, had been at the helm for 35 years and was one of just four head teachers at Nethercliffe.

The first, Lizzie Wright, led the school from its opening in 1915 until 1935.

During that time, Nethercliffe grew from humble beginnings at 45 and 47 Hatherley Road. The school later moved to its current and much larger home in 1932, beside the original site.

Following Miss Wright, Madeline Russell took the helm, just as war clouds were gathering over Europe.

In 1939, when hostilities began, she considered evacuating the school, but chose to stay in Winchester.

In February, 1943, while escorting pupils through the city centre, the decision nearly came back to haunt her.

German aircraft dropped several bombs, one of which landed near the school party at the corner of City Road and Hyde Street.

Shielding the pupils from the blast, Mrs Russell received minor cuts from flying debris and the children escaped unhurt.

In 1958, Patrick Whitfield succeeded her at Nethercliffe and, in 1964, his son, Gordon, joined the staff, becoming head teacher in 1970.

To mark the school's closure, around 60 former pupils held a reunion at the site last week. Among them was 84-year-old David Johnson, who attended Nethercliffe between 1926 and 1929.

A retired teacher from Oxfordshire, he described the school as "a friendly place, but with a formal atmosphere".

He was not the only member of his family to attend the co-ed school. His 88-year-old cousin from Petersfield, John Edmonds, and his 79-year-old sister from Chandler's Ford, Ruth Ridge, also went to Nethercliffe.

Another former pupil, Phil Yates, from Winchester, who attended the school between 1932 and 1938, said he was "saddened" when he heard that Nethercliffe was closing and he paid tribute to its ethos.

"They always made you feel at home and looked after their children well, and that theme continued on through the years," he said.

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