St Leonards-Mayfield School
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| Motto | "Actions Not Words" |
|---|---|
| Established | 1872 |
| Type | Independent day and boarding school |
| Headmistress | Miss A M Beary, MA MPhil Cantab, PGCE |
| Chairman of the Governors | The Lady Davies of Stamford MA (Oxon), MBA |
| Founder | Mother Cornelia Connelly SHCJ (1809–1870) |
| Location |
The Old Palace Mayfield East Sussex TN20 6PH England Coordinates: 51°01′17″N 0°15′42″E / 51.0215°N 0.2617°E |
| DfE number | 845/6035 |
| DfE URN | 114627 Tables |
| Students | 400 |
| Gender | Girls |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses | 4 |
| Colours | Light Blue, Navy Blue |
| Former pupils | Old Cornelians |
| Website | www |
Mayfield School, previously St Leonards-Mayfield School, is an independent boarding and day school for girls aged 11 to 18. It is situated in the village of Mayfield in East Sussex. The current headmistress is Miss Antonia Beary. The school was founded by Mother Cornelia Connelly in 1872, with the oldest buildings dating from the 14th century.
Mayfield School has its origins in the Convent of the Holy Child Jesus school at St Leonards-on-Sea. Mother Cornelia Connelly of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus chanced upon the Old Palace at the idyllic village of Mayfield. At that time Louisa Caton, the Duchess of Leeds (widow of Francis D'Arcy-Osborne, 7th Duke of Leeds) had requested Mother Connelly to take her in as a nun. Despite her efforts Mother Connelly remained unimpressed. The Duchess then turned her attention to setting up orphanages. She purchased the Mayfield estate which included the Old Palace and presented it to the Society. On the morning of 18 November 1863 Mass was celebrated at Mayfield for the first time since the mid-16th century. The original school at St Leonards and the new school at Mayfield merged in 1953 to form the current school. The junior school was closed in 1975 and St Leonards-Mayfield thus became solely a senior school. In March 2015 the school changed its name to Mayfield School, but it retains its strong links with the SHCJ. The teachers are mostly lay staff but the nuns still maintain a strong presence as members of the Board of Governors and pastoral care staff.
The Old Palace was originally a holiday residence of the Archbishops of Canterbury during the 14th and 15th centuries. During the Reformation, it was handed over to King Henry VIII who gave it to several leading noblemen of his day. Thomas Gresham lived there and Queen Elizabeth I was among his guests at the Old Palace. It was bought by the Baker family, a prominent family in the iron foundry industry. As the iron industry began to decline, so did the family's fortunes. The Old Palace became derelict and abandoned by the mid 18th century. It has since been designated a Grade I listed building.
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