Downsend School
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| Motto | Nihil Virtuti Invium (Latin for Nothing is denied to valour) |
|---|---|
| Established | 1918 |
| Type |
Independent school Preparatory School |
| Religion | C of E |
| Head Master | Mr Ian Thorpe |
| Location |
Leatherhead Road Leatherhead Surrey KT22 8TJ England 
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| Local authority | Surrey |
| DfE URN | 125351 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 2–13 |
| Houses | Norbury, Headley, Wisley, Ranmore |
| Website | www |
Downsend School is a co-educational independent school for pupils aged between two and thirteen years. It is located in Ashtead, Leatherhead and Epsom, in Surrey, UK.
Downsend was founded by and for nearly a century owned and headmastered by three generations of the Linford family. A. H. Linford had started Peterborough Lodge, a preparatory school for about 100 boys aged 5 to 15, including 5 to 10 boarders, at 143 Finchley Road, Hampstead, about 1898. During the First World War he opened Downsend for the boarders from Peterborough Lodge, and in 1940 after the beginning of the Second World War the two schools amalgamated at the Downsend site between Leatherhead and Ashtead, and A. H. Linford's son Cedric T. Linford became headmaster. For about a year from 1942 the boarders were taken out of the London area to Hurstpierpoint College in Sussex, where they were under the control of the mathematics master, Denys Straker. C. T. Linford remained headmaster, also teaching Latin and Greek, until his son Christopher J. Linford took over in 1968. The school was run as a non-denominational preparatory school for boys aged 8 to 13. It achieved a good record for scholarships to leading public schools, especially during the long period when Denys Straker was the mathematics master. In 1968 the school had 220 boys; Christopher Linford expanded the business to four schools in the area educating a total of around 900 boys and girls. In 2002 no one in the family was willing to take on the heavy responsibility of running the school and it was sold to Asquith Court Schools Ltd.
It is now a school for boys and girls, and takes on pupils from 6 to 13 years of age. Unusually the school does not have charitable status, being run as a profitable business by Cognita Limited (chaired by Chris Woodhead). Downsend's headmaster is Mr Ian Thorpe, previously head of Chinthurst School. The sports ground is on site. Though the school goes from 6 to 13, there are also 3 lodges which admit children from 2½ to 6. Downsend school costs £3,310 - £4,010 a term.
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