WINIFRED WEST SCHOOLS LIMITED

Winifred West Schools Limited is the company which owns and operates:

The following gives a brief history of Winifred West Schools.

In 1912 Miss Winifred West issued a prospectus stating she would open a school for girls in July the following year. Frensham (named after a village in Surrey where Miss West was born) opened on 17 July 1913 with three girls, five staff, a cook, a housemaid, a laundress and an odd-jobs man. The School was never advertised but by 1918 there were over 100 students; in 1943 there were some 250, and in 1963 more than 330. Today, the school maintains a commitment to the provision of excellent facilities for more than 250 boarders and a strong complement of day students.

Miss West was always aware of the need for Schools to adopt a responsible role in the local community. Accordingly, in 1941 she funded, with friends, the building of a Weaving Workshop to act as a continuation school where handicrafts could be taught to local children - mainly spinning, weaving and carpentry. Thus Sturt was born. Over the years, other crafts such as pottery, jewellery, textiles and screenprinting were introduced, the shop and gallery were opened, the Sturt School for Wood was established and the Friends of Sturt association was formed. The Workshop Cafe has also been established at Sturt.

Another branch of the Company was opened in 1947 – Holt Farm. It originally maintained a small dairy herd providing milk for the Schools and an opportunity for field observation and study for classes in geography and biology. Holt Farm ceased operations in the late 1980s and the grazing rights are now leased to a local farmer.

A preparatory boarding school for Frensham was established in 1954 in response to repeated requests from rural families. Gib Gate started with nine girl boarders and three members of staff. In the 1970s Gib Gate became a co-educational school catering for a single stream of day students, from pre-school to Year 6, with boarding available at Frensham for girls in Years 4, 5 and 6.

In 1980, Winifred West Schools Foundation Limited was established to provide ongoing financial support for the Schools.

Over the years ventures such as the Holt School of Physical Education and the Hartfield School of Senior Studies were important innovations with significant educational impact. A preparatory school for Frensham, known as Little Frensham and built nearby, was to be opened in 1939 but, prior to its occupation, was razed to the ground by bushfires which devastated the district.

In 1917, Miss West began formal meetings of a Council made up of staff, old girls, the head girl, another prefect and three people from outside the School community. In 1932 a Company was formed to safeguard the existence and character of the School and to prevent exploitation for personal gain.

Towards the end of the 1920s, Miss West saw the need to put the School on a more permanent footing. As sole owner, she felt she might jeopardise the future of the School in the event of her illness or death. So in 1932, the company Frensham School Limited was formed and Frensham Council (as outlined above) became the executive body.

In 1952 the Articles of Frensham School Limited were amended. The Board of Governors replaced the Council, which became an advisory body. In 1955, in recognition of the existence of Sturt and Gib Gate, Frensham School Limited changed its name to Winifred West Schools Limited.