Castle House School

52.769°N 2.379°W / 52.769; -2.379

Quick Facts Haberdashers' Castle House, Address ...

Haberdashers' Castle House
Address
Chetwynd End Newport , Shropshire , TF10 7JE England
Information
Type	Independent preparatory school
Religious affiliation(s)	Christian
Established	1944
Department for Education URN	123611 Tables
Chairman of Governors	James Penney
Headmaster	Ian Sterling[1]
Gender	Co-educational
Age	2 to 11
Enrolment	122 (in 2014)[2]
School Trust	Haberdashers' West Midlands Academy Trust
Former pupils	Old Castilians
Parent Institution	Haberdashers' Adams
Website	http://www.castlehouseschool.co.uk

Close

Haberdashers' Castle House is an independent preparatory day school for boys and girls, first established in 1944, at Chetwynd End, Newport, Shropshire.^[2]

The school is an associate of the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers'. It is also a member of the Haberdashers' West Midlands Academy Trust founded by nearby Haberdashers' Adams.

The school buildings were previously a group of houses consolidated into one mansion that was called "Merevale" before the school was founded, begun in the late 18th century with early 19th century and further modern extensions.^[3] In the grounds of the school is a mid-19th century brick folly consisting of a retaining wall with five embattled turrets and arrow slits.^[4]

The school is operated by the Haberdashers' Company under its own Castle House School Trust Ltd, a registered charitable organization, by up to twelve governors of the Trust.^[5] It occupies a Grade II listed main building with extensive grounds.^[2] Its "Cherubs Nursery" takes pre-school children aged from two to four.^[6] From here boys and girls, in roughly equal numbers, go into the Lower School, which comprises a Reception class and Years 1 and 2. The Upper School then caters for children until they leave, usually at the age of eleven.^[2][7]

French is taught from the Nursery years on, and drama and dance begin in Reception. Sporting activities take place every day, and these include gymnastics.^[2]

After leaving Haberdashers' Castle House, children typically go on to Haberdashers' Adams, Newport High School, Burton Borough School, with others moving to Wrekin College, Ellesmere College, Shrewsbury High School, Wolverhampton Girls' High School, Wolverhampton Grammar School, Adcote School, and others.^[8]

A new headteacher, Ian Sterling, took over Haberdashers' Castle House in January 2018.^[1] The previous head, Richard Walden, was chairman in 2014 of the Independent Schools Association. Opening its annual conference in May 2014, he was critical of the state sector, claiming that "Schools are turning out too many amoral children because teachers cannot find the time to teach the difference between right and wrong."^[9] This was quickly disputed by the government's Education Secretary, Michael Gove.^[10]

In 2023, the school became an associate of the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers' and a partner of Haberdashers' Adams under the joint agreement with Head of the MAT, Gary Hickey, also headmaster of Haberdashers' Adams. ^[11]

• Piers Corbyn (born 1947), conspiracy theorist
• Jeremy Corbyn (born 1949), politician, leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020 (younger brother of Piers Corbyn).^[12]

• Listed buildings in Newport, Shropshire