Nathaniel Woodard
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Reverend Nathaniel Woodard (1811 - 25 April 1891) founded 11 schools for the middle classes in England whose aim was to provide education based on sound principle and sound knowledge, firmly grounded in the Christian faith. His educational principles are promoted today through the Woodard Corporation.
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[edit] Early life
Woodard was the son of a country gentleman of limited means and was brought up and educated privately by his pious and devout mother. In 1834 he entered Oxford where his academic studies were interrupted by marriage.
[edit] Career
He was ordained in 1841 and obtained a curacy at St Bartholomew's, Bethnal Green. Here he started a church school for the children of deprived parishioners. As a result of a controversial sermon on the confession he was moved to another curacy.
In 1846, obtaining a curacy at St Mary's, New Shoreham, he was again struck by the poverty, and the lack of education amongst his middle class parishioners. He opened a day school in his vicarage, and in 1848 he started St Nicholas' School, which took boarders, and was in 1849 merged to form the College of St Mary and St Nicholas, and these eventually formed the present day Lancing College. It was from these beginnings that he started to work full time on promoting educational projects, resigning from his curacy in 1850.
In accordance with his firm anglo catholic beliefs, and in contrast to similar although less successful work by Joseph Lloyd Brereton there were no concessions to either those Anglicans of the low church or to those belonging to non-conformist churches. The efforts of Woodard and his supporters raised about £500,000 by the time of his death in 1891.
[edit] Schools founded by Woodard
There are 11 in total and they include:
- Lancing College (1848)
- Hurstpierpoint College (1849)
- Ardingly College (1858)
- Denstone College (formerly St Chad's - 1868)
- Abbots Bromley School for Girls (formerly the School of S. Mary and S. Anne - 1874)
- King's College (Taunton) (1880)
- Ellesmere College (1884)
- Worksop College (formerly St Cuthbert's College - 1890)
- St. Peter's Collegiate
- Prestfelde School
[edit] References
Honey, J.R.deS.: Tom Brown's Universe (1977)
