WHAT? WHERE?

Nestled in the heart of the beautiful Dorset countryside, Hanford is a day and boarding school for girls aged 7-13 and is, in our eyes, a true gem. The school was set up in 1947 with just 12 girls by Mrs Clifford Canning (her husband being a former headmaster of Canford School), and passed on to their daughter Sarah Canning, who became head before handing the school over to Hanford School Charitable Trust more recently. And, quite frankly, I imagine the school hasn’t changed much. 45 magical acres are home to Jacobean-style Hanford House, a small gothic chapel, climbing tree, around 90 girls, 20 ponies and numerous dogs. Former pupils include Santa Montefiore, Tara Palmer-Tompkinson and, more recently, Millie Mackintosh of Made in Chelsea fame.

While the school might be seen as an adorable throwback to an Enid Blyton era, set in an atmospheric manor house and rolling fields, where girls ride ponies before breakfast and stroll the halls with knitting tucked under their arms, academics are strong and the view is firmly forward looking. Only a 2½ hour drive from London, it’s on the radar of more adventurous London parents (there is a coach to Richmond via Andover and Fleet that runs on half terms and exeats), overseas families (particularly popular with Forces parents but a spattering from Spain, Germany, China, Nigeria), plus West Country girls and plenty of former pupils’ children.

The school is non-selective, and while it is thought of by some as alternative (there are no uniforms), it is no such thing. It is quirky yet traditional and has a strong family feel. Not much changes here – because the formula works! Girls climb trees, canter over the downs and roam freely about the grounds as they did 50 years ago, but Hanford still feeds top boarding schools and learning isn’t sacrificed for freedom. There is no new astro or flashy performing arts complex but that is not important to the ethos of the school. It’s old money rather than bling, unshowy rather than glamorous, Malory Towers rather than Eaton Square Upper, with some truly bonkers traditions and eccentricity running through its veins.

FACILITIES

The gorgeous main building presides over orchards, fields, a walled kitchen garden which provides much of the fresh fruit and veg for the school kitchens, and large working stables. Inside are a hall – a former courtyard, now with a roof – that doubles for lunch, tea, plays and concerts and with dorms above. There is little superficial gloss and shine, and the overall feel is that of a large, comfy and rambling family home.

I can vouch for the food. Top notch and never boring, everything’s homemade by brilliant chef Joe and his team. Joe always asks the girls what they think about each meal (and they aren’t afraid to tell him). Food is served by staff eating with pupils at the table, rather than canteen style, which adds to the relaxed and homely atmos.

A former shed has been turned into the delightful Art Barn, which is divided into art on one side and ‘handwork’ (aka textiles) on the other. The standard of the art – painting, drawing, ceramics (a kiln has its own separate little shed) and sculpture – is impressive and many girls go on to win arts scholarships (seven this year alone).

The charmingly named ‘handwork’ is sewing and knitting and from Year 6 the girls become adept at using sewing machines and making – and mending – clothes to a very high standard. They understand the link between creativity and confidence. The old Art room is soon to be developed into a wellbeing hub: watch this space.

The music block may be small but music is considered very cool here and all the girls play an instrument (including the bagpipes) or sing in one of the many choirs or musical ensembles. Girls learn composition and also how to spin the decks.

Classrooms are dotted around the place, with a main teaching block and rooms for specialist subjects – including a dedicated Latin classroom (everyone takes Latin from Year 6). There’s an ICT suite to learn coding and iPads are used in some lessons. The Juniors (Years 3 & 4) have their lessons with two class teachers in a cool new wooden circular building complete with magnetic walls and whiteboard desks; from Year 5 onwards it’s all specialist teachers.

The gym, with sprung wooden floor, wooden climbing frames, ropes and wooden horses may not be huge or state-of-the-art but it’s perfectly serviceable.

Hanford lacks for nothing when it comes to educating today’s children – the facilities may not all be cutting edge but arguably the lack of gadgets and widgets encourages a focus on girls’ innate technical skills.

They have a perfectly fine outdoor pool, delightful chapel, tennis courts and athletics field and, more importantly, acres of grounds including Hod and Ham hills that see girls running up and down, gardens galore where the girls build jumps for their ponies, a stable block where you can stable your steed or ride the school’s own ponies with a large indoor menage and a cross country course. Everyone rides here. Keenies get up at 7.30am for ‘catching’, bringing the ponies in from the fields, give them breakfast and then go off for theirs.

Forest school activities are woven into the weeks’ lessons – rather than timetabled – and lots takes place on Saturday mornings.

ACADEMICS

Non-selective, girls join at all ages, with most staying until 13. Class sizes are small, with a mixed Third Form (Years 3 and 4 in new money), expanding to a not-so-whopping 32 girls in Year 7 split into two forms and three sets. And yet, small is beautiful (and successful). Girls go on mostly to boarding senior schools, including big hitters Bryanston, Sherborne Girls, Marlborough, Downe House, Benenden, St Swithun’s, Clayesmore and the St Mary’s Calne, Shaftesbury and Ascot.

Academically rigorous, with a strong focus on the high standard of teaching and staff who will stay the course. Girls take Latin from Year 6, in a dedicated Latin classroom and Philosophy is taught as a separate subject. The school is well aware that it will live or die by the quality of its teaching and, fortunately, does not find it hard to lure, and keep, teachers in this idyllic part of the world. There are no plans to scrap Common Entrance, unlike some of Hanford’s neighbours. We hear Hanford girls have a great deal of currency in the big wide world – not only are they strong candidates for senior schools when they get to the top of the school, but on a personal level they are well-rounded, confident and full of gumption. This is no fluffy soft option on the schooling scale – we could pretend the school is all about ponies and rambling Dorset greenery but it isn’t. Hanford may be small and below the radar for some, but it hits hard.

HEAD TEACHER

Hilary Phillips joined the school as Head in September 2023. Educated at Hereford Cathedral School, with a degree in French and Education from Exeter University, she speaks fluent French and excellent Portuguese, having spent eight years living and working in Portugal where she was Director of Studies at the Cambridge School in Lisbon. She was Director of Pastoral Care at Edgeborough School before taking up her first headship at Monmouth School Girls’ Prep. Interesting fact: she is a former GB skateboard high jump record holder.

Warm and friendly, she felt right at home from the start. She talks about the school as a ‘wholesome’ place which preserves the magic of childhood; where the girls love their ponies, spend loads of time in the school’s gardens and grounds, climbing trees and cartwheeling in the playground; but aren’t babied or wrapped in cotton wool. Instead, they’re taught resilience, how to make informed decisions and to grow in assurance, to listen to others and know that they will be listened to in turn. Under her guidance, the school will retain its unique spirit (there is nowhere else quite like it) but evolve and move with the times (albeit gently). She’s developing the already academic curriculum to deepen links between subjects and draw on the school’s facilities (like setting up a farmers’ market) – and she’s already establishing some new school traditions.

The school has recently become part of the Sherborne Charitable Trust, developing a close working partnership with Sherborne Girls, sharing expertise, knowledge, trips (and very handily, a lot of admin) but each school retaining its own identity. Whilst some girls will go onto Sherborne Girls (as they have always done), the emphasis remains on finding the right school for each girl, whether that’s Sherborne Girls, other senior schools in the area and beyond.

REPORTS

You can see the latest reports from the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI), equivalent to Ofsted in the state sector, which describe the quality of the pupils’ academic, other achievements and personal development as ‘excellent’, here.

SPORTS

They may not have an astro but sport is strong here. They make use of all their fields for hockey (as visiting teams discover to their disadvantage), cricket, rounders (sometimes whole-school games) and athletics, have large tennis courts which double as netball courts, and the school offers opportunities including pistol shooting. The Hanford U13 have been cross country championship winners many times. Swimming takes place in their own heated outdoor pool, even in the rain. Then there are the stables; everyone rides at least once a week.

BOARDING

Ah, now you’re talking. This is true boarding school nirvana, with a mix of full, weekly and occasional boarders with around 70% of girls choosing to stay at school. Very handily, all day girls can have one free night boarding a week. Girls are welcome to return home at weekends but many stay in (around 45-50 girls here at weekends).

All girls have a bed, boarding or not, and are free to bring in duvets, pillows, posters, toys, books, random knickknacks and soft toys. And they do. Bedrooms are just like being at home – much more so than most prep boarders – with proper beds rather than bunk beds, clothing kept in lockers outside the rooms and are small, reasonably messy, and cosy. The girls retreat here at breaks, change here and, basically, live here. In Year 8 girls move to a separate building, Fan’s, where you get TV and feel more grown-up.

WHAT ELSE?

In line with the school feeling like Blyton’s eccentric heaven, activities include stable management, bushcraft, floristry and LAMDA is popular, with a whole school summer play each year, 5th Form Play and, unusually, the Lower and Upper Sixth take part in a Nativity (a much more serious affair than the usual sobbing-four-year-olds-with-lopsided-angel-wings). Dance includes tap, ballet and jazz.

Weekends are less about trips to Laser Quest, ice skating and the cinema and more letter writing, chapel, horse riding, climbing, weekend BBQs, beetle drives – and simply playing. Much use is made of the pool, making dens, exploring the grounds of this unashamedly homely environment.

QUIRKS

Where should I start? The whole place is one big, colourful quirk. Old girls with fond memories send their daughters here, whose own mothers came here. There is no uniform, although jeans and leggings aren’t allowed – woolly tights and hoodies are standard garb here. If your daughter likes ponies, dogs, cats or chickens, you’ll win mega brownie points sending her here. Girls are left to their own devices more than any school I’ve seen, and the freedom they are awarded breeds happy, confident individuals.

Get your head around the Hanford nomenclature: Year 6 is the Fifth Form, Years 7 and 8 are the Upper and Lower Sixth.

Other schools have pupil school councils, head girls and prefects. At Hanford, there’s The Committee (in lieu of the latter), The Marthas (who deal with wellbeing and pastoral issues), the UCA (Under Cover Agents, whom keep their eye out for friendship issues) and the HSS (Hanford Secret Service, who make toast for everyone). It might all sound eccentric, but it serves a brilliant purpose – to involve the girls in all aspects of school life.

The school is overflowing with Hanford traditions and games. Take the Climbing Tree, with branches known as Dead Man’s Drop, Bucking Bronco, Senior Bog Roll, Badgers, Bunnies, and Worms. Girls start off on Sugars and are allowed to climb higher and higher branches as they move up the school (or as the girls put it, ‘once you’ve been here X summers’). Escape from Hanford is a whole school game involving two teams racing to a tree stump to retrieve clues, crack codes, find keys to unlock treasure.

Girls ride, swim, run and shoot in the Tetrathlon, Hanford’s equivalent of school sports day.

They play Quidditch on horseback, horses always appear in the school play (watch out for the zebra in the upcoming production of The Lion King, to be performed under the cedar tree in the grounds) and the school houses are names after breeds of pony (of course they are).

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

None are allowed in the school and tech’s only for the classroom. There are landlines for calls home.

WRAPAROUND CARE

Well, it’s basically a boarding school, so that’s covered! You can leave your cherubs here as long as you like. Trust me, they won’t want to go home.

FEES

Day fees per term £6250, boarding fees per term £7500.

WORD ON THE GROUND

Parents think Hanford is the stuff dreams are made of. They love the freedom (you don’t send your daughter here if you don’t), and are not fussed by the unprepossessing prefab classrooms and moss-covered gym. You’ve got to buy into the school – while it might not be every parent’s cup of tea, it is clear there is a huge demand for Hanford, with very, very happy kids and parents. Parents say they like the fact their girls are enjoying rich, low-tech childhoods, playing, riding, climbing, tending chickens, mucking out stables, growing veggies in their gardens and greenhouses – their kids are adventurous with muddy knees. It is traditional to a T, with strong academics.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Good for: Parents who want their kids to enjoy their childhood for as long as possible and believe children learn through being happy, not hot-housed. Families who live in a city and want to give their little ones a countryside childhood. Aspirational families, those who trust the school to get the best out of their kids. Best for boarders, but non boarders are not left behind.

Not for: Helicopter parents or those impressed by super-flashy new sports halls. Parents who wrap their offspring in cotton wool – here, children are encouraged to play outdoors in all weathers, climb trees, get muddy building dens and generally live out a childhood fantasy.

See for yourself. Like a virtual tour of the school? Call Karen Mallinson, Head of Admissions, on 01258 860219 or email her at admissions@hanford.dorset. sch.uk. 2024 dates: Sat 3 Feb, Sat 12 Oct 2024.

Hanford School, Child Okeford, Blandford Forum, Dorset DT11 8HN, Tel: 01258 860219.

Hanford School, near Blandford Forum

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