Shock closure of 183-year-old college leaves pupils looking for new schools

ITS PREP SCHOOL HAS ALSO SHUT AFTER ALMOST 90 YEARS

- By ZENA HAWLEY

HUNDREDS of children at two linked Derbyshire schools face the prospect of finding new places to learn from September after their sudden closure was announced.

Mount St Mary’s College and Barlborough Hall School, on the outskirts of Chesterfield, broke the news to parents and pupils on Wednesday, a few weeks after the school closed for the summer.

The chair of governors, Shaun Whyman, said he understood the “shock and distress this news will undoubtedly bring to our entire school community”.

Barlborough Hall caters for children aged three to 11, who then move to the senior school at Mount St Mary’s College in Spinkhill, which has also offered full and part boarding facilities to pupils aged 11-18.

Mount St Mary’s College was founded almost 200 years ago, while Barlborough Hall had been open for nearly 90 years. In 2004, they became an independent charitable trust governed by a board of trustees.