The school field in the snow
St David’s College is an independent junior school in West Wickham and
Beckenham, which was founded in 1926. Its first principal was Mrs. Gwenllian Davies, a
graduate of Cardiff University, who was a gifted teacher and an excellent administrator.
The school began in Mr. and Mrs. Davies’ house and comprised just one room for a
Kindergarten. By 1931 there were 32 pupils on the roll whose ages ranged from 5 to 10.
Mrs. Davies insisted that all children learnt to read before they were allowed to study
any other subjects apart from number work!
Sometimes the pupils were able to play in the field beyond the garden of the house,
and in 1935 the first Sports Day was held in this field. Sports Day is still an annual
event in the field. A photograph of the 1937 Sports Day shows children wearing the brown
and gold blazers which are still part of the uniform for pupils today. The field was owned
by the Schove family and in 1935 Mr. and Mrs. Davies sold the freehold premises known as
St. David’s, as well as the scholastic fixtures and fittings annexed to the property,
to Mr. Derek Justin Schove. The cost to Mr. Schove was £900. The school has been owned by
the Schove family ever since!
During the Second World War the number of pupils declined but the school opened its
doors to students from the ages of 3 to 33. Mr. Schove was a qualified meteorologist and
he enlisted in the Royal Air Force so the school was carried on in his absence by Miss
Jupp. After the War the numbers of pupils attending St. David’s quickly grew and by
1949 the older pupils had moved into Justin Hall. This hall had been destroyed by a bomb
during the War and had been rebuilt to provide classrooms on the street level and a hall
down below.
In the early 1950s the House system was introduced to St. David’s. A pupil
became either a Beck or a Wick, depending on whether the family lived in Beckenham or West
Wickham. This did not make it easy for pupils who lived in surrounding areas such as
Croydon, so in !978 the present House classifications of David, Justin and Oak were
initiated. Pupil numbers by the 1950s had risen to about 130 and an extension was built at
Justin Hall. In 1958 Mr. Schove was awarded his PhD but some pupils could never remember
to say ‘Dr.’ instead of ‘Mr.’ Schove!
School numbers continued to grow and in 1968 the Little School opened on its new
site in St. David’s Close. The Golden Jubilee of the school was celebrated in 1976
and in 1983 the school was granted Accreditation by the Independent Schools Joint Council.
Sadly Dr. Schove died in 1986 shortly before the Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Mrs. Schove
took over as Principal, a Headteacher was appointed and the long-term future of the school
was assured. Mrs. Schove has since been joined as Principal by her eldest daughter, Mrs.
Wagstaff, and the Headteacher is now Mrs. Johnson who has been on the staff at St.
David’s for over twenty years.
In 1997 the number of pupils attending St. David’s is 194 - how different from
the early days of the school in St. David’s house. Academic standards are high. By
the end of last Summer Term, in addition to offers of fee-paying places at the Independent
Schools, the twenty five Year 6 pupils had been awarded:
In July 1996 celebrations, including a dinner dance, were organised for the Platinum
Jubilee of the school. The whole school had an outing to Legoland, UK, and this was
enjoyed as much by the staff as it was by the pupils!
Data about this school can also be found on the ISIS site.
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This page was last 
07 October, 1997
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