INCORPORATION OF THE SCHOOL

Members of the Society will be interested to learn that the Governors are in the process of reorganising the framework within which the school’s affairs are managed.

Currently the school operates, under the terms of a Charity Commission Scheme of 1983, as an unincorporated charitable trust under the supervision of a Board of Governors.

Following a recent inspection, the Charity Commission recommended that the school’s management framework be reorganised to reflect current best practice by incorporating the school.

The process of incorporation is being undertaken in consultation with, and with the approval of, the Charity Commission. In summary, it involves the establishment of a company limited by guarantee to which the assets, undertaking and liabilities of the school will be transferred by the existing trustees at completion - scheduled for 1 August, 2009.

Incorporation will not affect the day to day running of the school itself, which will continue as it has done. The most noticeable aspect of the reorganisation will be in the school’s letterhead and other stationery, which must state that the school is an incorporated charity. The most material benefit, other than a modernised management framework, will be the ability to attract new governors.

The incorporation process has involved those concerned in a detailed review of the history of the school and of its property. This is an on-going process as, when the school was founded, it was endowed with extensive properties and mineral rights. The title to these is generally recognised by those involved in local conveyancing practice; unfortunately, when they were given to the school in the 1580s the relevant rights and properties were described by reference to individuals and place names which are difficult to identify today.

One very interesting discovery has been that, when the school was founded, a Royal Charter was granted by Elizabeth I. There is considerable debate as to the current status of the Charter – at the time of writing, the Privy Council’s legal eagles are poring over the problem – but it is possibly still in effect; in which case expect to hear more on this topic.

Anthony Fox