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Buglawton Hall is a former country house, later a school, to the northeast of Buglawton, a suburb of Congleton, Cheshire, England.

Architecture

The building dates from the 16th century, with later additions and alterations. In the 19th century its exterior was stuccoed and castellated. Later in the century a billiard room and a service wing were added. The house is constructed in brick on a stone plinth, with a half-timbered core. Pevsner describes it as a "modest C16 house was absorbed into an early C18 one, which was brought up to date in the late C18 with castellations, a fine fanlight, and fashionable Roman cement".

Manchester Corporation replaced a "good medieval timber roof" in the stable block with a steel roof.

The hall, together with outbuildings to the east, is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

History of the house

In 1811 Mr Pearson, a silk manufacturer, was living at Buglawton Hall. In 1883 the owner of the house was Fanny Pearson, a widow, who died that year. One of Fanny Pearson's daughters, Julia Pearson, married Charles William Doherty, who was the son of the Chief League of Justice of Ireland, John Doherty, who was a relation to the UK's shortest serving prime minister George Canning. Together they had children, including their daughter Madelaine Doherty, who was believed to be the last owner of Buglawton Hall.

School

In 1947 there was discussion about the local authority buying the building for use as a grammar school. In 1950 it was purchased by Manchester City Council. The school was opened in 1954 as a school for maladjusted children. The school was residential and had the capacity to take 41 children.

In 2000 Ofsted found the school, which was by then termed a Special school for children with Emotional and behaviour disorder, to be Effective.

In 2006 Ofsted found the school to be Good, though noted that the boarding accommodation was in a poor condition.

In 2008 Ofsted judged the school to be Inadequate and requiring Special Measures. They listed, amongst other issues, that there was no headteacher in post and therefore management and oversight were poor; behaviour management was inconsistent; children did not make enough progress to make up for previous poor attainment; there were safety issues; and there was no recording of disciplinary sanctions taken against children or of occasions when children were restrained. As a result of this, in 2009 the executive principal was sacked.

In 2011 Ofsted judged the school to be Satisfactory and it came out of Special Measures.

In 2013 Ofsted again judged the school as Inadequate and requiring Special Measures. There were serious concerns about leadership, governance, behaviour management and children's safety, and teaching required improvement. In addition, "serious allegations of a child protection nature were being investigated by the appropriate authorities".

In 2014 Ofsted judged the school as Good and no longer requiring Special Measures.

In 2017 the local authority decided to close the school; it had 14 pupils at this point and some of the buildings were disused or not fit for purpose. In 2018 the school was closed.

Current use

In September 2023 it was reported that the residential block of Buglawton Hall School has been leased to Nestlings Care.

See also

• Listed buildings in Congleton

References

1. ^ de Figueiredo, Peter; Treuherz, Julian (1988), Cheshire Country Houses, Chichester: Phillimore, p. 220, ISBN 0-85033-655-4
2. Nikolaus Pevsner; Edward Hubbard (March 1971). Cheshire. Yale University Press. pp. 118–. ISBN 978-0-300-09588-3. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
3. Historic England, "Buglawton Hall (Buglawton Hall School); outbuildings to the east of Buglawton Hall (1087062)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 30 March 2012
4. Samuel Lewis (1811). A topographical dictionary of England. pp. 610–. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
5. "Mrs. Fanny Pearson, Deceased" (PDF). The London Gazette. 19 February 1884. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
6. ^ "Historic school leased to a therapy provider". Congleton Chronicle. 28 September 2023. p. 22.
7. "Buglawton Hall, Congleton". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 10 July 1947.
8. ^ "Proposed closure of Buglawton Hall School". Manchester City Council. 13 September 2017. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
9. ^ "Buglawton school to remain empty following closure". Congleton Chronicle. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
10. "Manchester: (Cheshire) Congleton, Buglawton Hall Boarding Special School (Mal)". The National Archives. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
11. ^ Donnelly, Jed (2000). "INSPECTION REPORT: BUGLAWTON HALL SCHOOL". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
12. Moreton, Henry (2006). "Buglawton Hall School". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
13. ^ Halifax, Kath (2008). "Buglawton Hall School: Inspection Report". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
14. Qureshi, Yakub (7 July 2009). "Special school head suspended". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
15. Gordon, Honoree (2011). "Buglawton Hall School: Inspection Report". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
16. ^ Austin, Jane (2013). "Buglawton Hall School". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
17. Padgett, Brian (2014). "Buglawton Hall School". Ofsted. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
18. "Consultation on proposal to close Buglawton Hall School". Manchester City Council. 12 June 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
19. "Publication of statutory notice and proposal to close Buglawton Hall Special School" (PDF). Manchester City Council. 12 June 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2018.

Further reading

• Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Hubbard, Edward; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2011) , Cheshire, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 190, ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6

External links

• Work has now completed on the £6.5 million rebuilding and refurbishment of the Grade II Listed Buglawton Hall in Cheshire - images
• Buglawton Hall, Congleton, Cheshire: perspective of the garden front

53°10′38″N 2°10′23″W / 53.17709°N 2.17308°W / 53.17709; -2.17308

• Houses completed in the 16th century
• Houses completed in the 18th century
• Georgian architecture in Cheshire
• Country houses in Cheshire
• Grade II listed buildings in Cheshire
• Grade II listed educational buildings
• Educational institutions established in 1954
• 1954 establishments in England
• Defunct schools in the Borough of Cheshire East
• Educational institutions disestablished in 2018
• Defunct special schools in England