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A cause for concern in

CHURCH LANGTON

There can be no doubt that the Hanbury School building in Church Langton is one of the jewels in the Chronicle area. It is often featured in articles promoting tourism and places of interest in South Leicestershire. Along with the magnificent church of St Peter's with its imposing tower which beckons those with architectural or church interest to the village, the visitor is treated to the added delight of this nineteenth century gem in so unlikely a setting.

That this building, designed by the celebrated architect Joseph Goddard of Leicester, is only a fraction of what was intended by the man who bears the name of the school may come as a surprise to many. William Hanbury, Rector of the Langtons in the mid-eighteenth century, was so enamoured by that beautiful seat of learning, Oxford, that he vowed to reproduce the same in the Langtons.

Such were the aspirations of this learned man, or eccentric extraordinaire, depending on your point of view, that he is considered as being one of the first independent (financially motivated) horticulturists, growing his own seedlings which were then sold not only in this country but also abroad. One sale alone raised £10,000.

He is, however, better remembered for bringing 'Messiah' by Handel to the area, St Peter's being the first parish church to perform such a work. It has to be recognised that the performance was motivated by financial gain rather than aesthetic need.

Alas, his vision, drastically scaled down through lack of funds, did not bear fruition until after the Education Act of 1870 which required that all children from age 5 to 11 be educated. The present Gothic building dates from 1873 with later additions as the school grew to take in children from a much wider catchment area.

The school, since that time, has undergone many changes, the most drastic being in 1964 when the Hanbury Secondary Modern moved to the old premises of Kibworth Grammar School to become Kibworth High School. This left the primary school, which is housed in a purpose built section of a later age, at the end of the Gothic buildings.

The buildings of Hanbury's School are in the control of the Hanbury Trustees, set up by William Hanbury himself to oversee the finances of his project. After the removal to Kibworth, this left the original building standing empty. However, new plans were set afoot by the Leicestershire County Council to turn the school into a field study centre for young children, who came and stayed for up to a week to learn of life in the countryside. Other organisations hired the centre at weekends and holidays.

This has been the history of the buildings until the present. However, the future does not look bright! It cannot be certain that the LCC will continue to honour its contract with the Hanbury trustees in renting the buildings for much longer. Earlier this year there was a scare that the Centre might be closed. These ditherings have already caused confusion to the primary school who, in the desire for an adequate cohesive site, approached LCC for long term plans. The response has been a substantial amount of money being made available to build a new school. Work starts later this month.

If this is the case and the LCC do not renew their contract, what will happen to the buildings? The Gothic building is Grade Two listed, and therefore safe from any serious demise. However, the trustees cannot allow nothing to happen; they have to pay their bills the same as the rest of us.

What then the future of Hanbury's vision? Will the trustees be forced to decide on a white elephant or turn it into a des. res? If the former is the only option available, what will be the price? In order to preserve our heritage it may well be necessary for the trustees to sell land; and we all know what land fetches the highest price! The trustees own enough potential building land in the village to see it grow half as big again.

It will not be lost to future generations, when they learn the history of Hanbury and his schools, that if the LCC in its wisdom had allowed or even suggested that the primary school return to its very roots, the status quo would have been maintained.

© Maxine Johnson, Church Langton 1995

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stephen.poyzer@which.net or jemeny@globalnet.co.uk

 © Kibworth & District Chronicle 1998