History

Pinewood Founded.

Pinewood was the brainchild of the Reverend F F Brackenbury.  He founded the school in 1875 at Maiden Erlegh in Berkshire.

In 1883 it was moved to Farnborough, Hampshire and the school remained there until 1938, under the following headmasters:

1899: Mr H Bull

1919: Colonel Shirley

1927: Mr C A Ranger

During WW2 the school led a gypsy-like existence, moving site four times, before finally settling at Postbridge, Devon in 1941, led by Mr G Wakeham as Headmaster.

 The school moved to its current site in Bourton, purchased from the Butler family. 

At the time, there was a railway station on the London-Bristol railway line only half a mile from the school, which made it a very convenient location.

The school began its first term there on May 7th, 1946 with 75 pupils and reverted to the original name of Pinewood.

On the 23rd July Pinewood was honoured by a visit from Her Majesty The Queen.

Mr G A Walters became Headmaster and oversaw developments such as the conversion of parts of the stable block into the science labs and a gymnasium. 

Day pupils were introduced and in 1975 there were 105 boys on roll.

Mr H G C Boddington (OP 1947-1952) took over the headship and led Pinewood through a huge amount of change and transition, reflecting national trends, including the introduction of girls to the school. 

Pre-Prep opened in the old stable block.

The 125th Anniversary was celebrated.

In 2002 Philip Hoyland became Headmaster, accompanied by his wife Henrietta.  This saw the implementation of a new strategic vision for Pinewood, including the construction of an astroturf, sports hall, changing block, science labs and the overhaul of many other facilities, helping to make it the leading prep school in the area. 

The vision set out by the Hoylands was continued with the appointment of Neal Bailey as Headmaster, accompanied by his wife Nicola.

TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall officially opened our new teaching and learning centre, The Hoyland – a purpose built state-of-the-art home for Middle School (Years 5 & 6) & SEND.

Pinewood celebrates its 150th anniversary in the academic year 2024-25.

There are currently 400 pupils on the roll, aged between 3-13, with children in Year 5 and above choosing to be either a day pupil or a weekly or regular (flexi) boarder.