Moira House
Address
Upper Carlisle Road

Eastbourne
,
East Sussex
,
BN20 7TE

England
Coordinates50°45′33″N 0°15′46″E / 50.7592°N 0.2627°E / 50.7592; 0.2627
Information
TypePrivate
Motto"Nemo a me alienus" - "Other people matter"
Religious affiliation(s)Interdenominational
Established1875
FounderCharles Ingham
Closed2020
Department for Education URN114651 Tables
ChairAndrew Pianca
School PrincipalA. Wood
GenderGirls (Boys in nursery, aged 0-4)
Age0 to 18
Enrolmentc. 320
Websitehttp://www.moirahouse.co.uk

Moira House School was an independent day and boarding school for girls aged 6 weeks to 18 years in Eastbourne, East Sussex, England, from 1887 to 2020, but founded in Surrey in 1875.

Moira House was an inter-denominational school.

In March 2017, the school had 312 pupils on roll, including ten boys, with 55 in the sixth form.[1]

History

The school was established in 1875 by Charles Ingham at Moira House in Surrey.[1] Within a few years it had moved to Eastbourne.[1] On 27 January 2018, the school merged with Roedean School as part of the newly created Roedean Group of Schools and became known as Roedean Moira House.[2][3][4] However, this lasted only two years, and the school closed permanently in August 2020, with most girls and some staff transferring to Roedean.

School houses

The school had a house system, and sisters were usually allocated to the same house. The houses had names from myths and legends:

  • Excalibur, symbolised by a sword and the colour gold
  • Pegasus, symbolised by a pegasus and the colour white
  • Vulcan, symbolised by a flame and the colour red
  • Merlin, symbolised by a wizard and the colour green

Sports

With views over the sea, the school grounds at Eastbourne opened directly onto the South Downs National Park, providing walking, cycling and pony trekking opportunities for the girls. Playing fields, including astroturf, provided for lawn tennis, cricket, football, field hockey, netball, lacrosse, and athletics. The school also had a 25-metre indoor heated swimming pool, and a sports hall. An equestrian centre was opened in September 2016.[1]

Music

Visiting staff taught cello, clarinet, flute, guitar, piano, recorder, saxophone, violin, vocal etc. Girls who wished to do so were able to take Associated Board of Examination music exams. The Chamber Choir performed locally, such as at Canterbury Cathedral. Every two years there was a Performing Arts Tour which involved flying to other parts of the world to perform, and destinations included San Francisco, Hong Kong, Australia, Dubai, and Barbados. The last tour was to New York City, where the choir sang at the Empire State Building, the United Nations Building and the Statue of Liberty. Girls could study musical theatre and take LAMDA exams in drama.

Notable former pupils

Closure

In March 2020, Andrew Pianca, chairman of governors of Roedean Moira House, announced: “It is with great sadness and regret that we have taken the difficult decision to close Roedean Moira House. Our legal advisors tell us it is the only route available to us.” The decision was blamed on falling numbers of pupils and “financial losses that we cannot sustain”.[8]

The school permanently closed in August 2020.

An Educational Needs Assessment explored the reasons behind the closure, finding that the school “suffered material operational losses for the financial year ending 2019” and that economic difficulties had been caused by lower demand for independent school places in the Eastbourne area. On 31 May 2022 approval was given for a plan to redevelop the five-acre Moira House School campus into a residential development of 33 apartments and 19 houses. The school's ancillary buildings, including the gym and swimming pool, would be demolished, but the three original 19th-century houses would be turned into housing.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "EDUCATIONAL QUALITY INSPECTION MOIRA HOUSE SCHOOL Inspection Report" (PDF). Independent Schools Inspectorate. March 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  2. ↑ "Official Launch of Roedean Moira House". School web site. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  3. ↑ "Roedean Forms the Roedean Group of Schools". Roedean School. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  4. ↑ "Roedean Forms Roedean Group of Schools And Welcomes New Additions". School House. School House Magazine. October 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  5. ↑ Good Schools Guide 2003 (Lucas Publications, 2003), p. 427
  6. ↑ "Godden, (Margaret) Rumer" in Cathy Hartley, A Historical Dictionary of British Women (2013), p. 187
  7. ↑ "Prunella Scales", in Horace Newcomb (ed.), Encyclopedia of Television (2014), p. 2019
  8. ↑ Harry Bullmore, Roedean Moira House school to shut due to financial losses, 6 March 2020
  9. ↑ https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/news/politics/redevelopment-of-former-eastbourne-school-into-52-homes-approved-3715349
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