Wadham Preparatory School

Wadham Preparatory School
Location
Strathfield, New South Wales
Australia Australia
Information
Type Independent, Primary, Day School
Denomination Non-denominational
Established 1945
Founder Miss K A Wyndham

Wadham Preparatory School[1] was a private, day, co-educational, preparatory school founded on Christian principles. It was located on Wallis Avenue in Strathfield, New South Wales, Australia.

History

The school was established in 1945 by Miss K A Wyndham[2] in her family home and catered to children from pre-Kindergarten (known as nursery) to Year Six.[3] In 1957, Wadham was purchased by Meriden, a neighbouring Anglican school, and was used as a sub-primary campus principally for girls, but also for nursery and kindergarten boys. In 1967 Meriden closed the Wadham campus having purchased land for its entire junior school in Redmyre Road, Strathfield.[4]

Kathleen Wyndham

Kathleen Aimee Wyndham was born in Forbes, New South Wales, in 1905[5] and was the middle of three children of Agnes Effie (née Finigan) and Stanley Charles Wyndham.[6] She was a great-granddaughter of Wadham Wyndham and her grandfather, Alexander Wyndham (died 1915), had arrived in Australia in the 1850s. Her father was a grocer and furniture dealer in Forbes and after his wife died in 1908, he moved to Glebe with his children who were looked after by their aunt, Rachel Kate Finigan.[7] Rachel Finigan, who had been a nurse, married Stanley Wyndham in 1911[8] and in 1912 the Wyndham family moved to Strathfield. She was educated at Methodist Ladies College in Burwood,[9] and in her youth she was a competitive grade tennis player.[10] After studying under Baddie Dumolo at the Sydney Kindergarten Training College in Henrietta Street, Waverley, Wyndham graduated in 1925.[11] She became the director of the kindergarten and primary department at the Methodist Ladies College. In 1935 she undertook a seven months' tour of England, Scotland and the Continent to study the latest methods practised in early childhood education.[12] In 1945 she established of Wadham. On 7 January 1956, aged 52, Wyndham married Harold Wenham Robinson in the chapel of Wesley College, University of Sydney.[13] That year she sold Wadham to Meriden. Wyndham died aged 83 in 1988.[14]

Wyndham's elder brother was Sir Harold Wyndham CBE[15][16] who was Director-General of Education in New South Wales between 1952 and 1968. He chaired the committee whose report (referred to as "The Wyndham Report") led to the Education Act of 1961 which completely re-organised secondary education in the State.[17] Her younger brother, Norman Wyndham OBE,[18] became a surgeon, a FRCS and a major in the Australian Army in World War II. From her father's second marriage she also had a half-brother, Robert.[19]

Campus

Wadham operated from the Wydham family home which had been named Wadham on its erection in 1912. Having been an early 20th Century house and garden, it was then adapted to school use. It had been built in the Federation style and was single storied with wrap-around verandahs and a central hall. After its closure, the building was demolished and two large 1970s style face-brick houses now stand in its place at 9 and 11 Wallis Avenue Strathfield.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Wadham Preparatory School Retrieved 18 August 2012
  2. ↑ "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. 5 April 1947. p. 26. Retrieved 18 August 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ↑ "NORTH EAST CORNER". The Northern Star. New South Wales, Australia. 22 May 1954. p. 4. Retrieved 1 August 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ Heritage Impact Statement Retrieved 1 August 2018.
  5. ↑ NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages Retrieved 18 August 2012
  6. ↑ NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages Retrieved 18 August 2012
  7. ↑ Stanley Charles Wyndham Retrieved 31 August 2017
  8. ↑ NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages Retrieved 18 August 2012
  9. ↑ "Methodist Ladies' College, Burwood". The Methodist. 45 (18). New South Wales. 2 May 1936. p. 4. Retrieved 31 August 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ↑ "LAWN TENNIS. Women's Grade Games". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 March 1931. p. 16. Retrieved 18 August 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. ↑ "GIRL GRADUATES". The Sun (4710). Sydney. 9 December 1925. p. 13 (FINAL EXTRA). Retrieved 30 August 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ↑ "SOCIAL AND PERSONAL". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 December 1935. p. 3. Retrieved 18 August 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ↑ Sun-Herald They were married Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  14. ↑ My Heritage Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  15. ↑ It's an Honour Retrieved 18 August 2012
  16. ↑ It's an Honour Retrieved 18 August 2012
  17. ↑ University of Sydney – Harold Wyndham
  18. ↑ It's an Honour Retrieved 18 August 2012
  19. ↑ "Family Notices". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 December 1953. p. 12. Retrieved 18 August 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.