A past to treasure, a future to nurture
It is good to have this chance to share with you this selection of materials relating to our School and its history. We hope that you will enjoy using this website as much as my colleagues and I enjoy our work in the Archives and the closely associated Alumni Office.
The documents, the images and the artefacts that we have in our collection enable us to chart and understand some of the key events in the School’s history and to trace its evolution from its somewhat embryonic form in 1890 – 4 boys on roll – to its present status as a thriving co-educational school for well over 500 students.
In recent years we have been able to draw on the Archives to support significant events in the school calendar – the celebration of our 125th birthday, the commemoration of the beginning and end of the First Word War, the centenary of our unique JBH Speech Competition, the reopening of the refurbished 1934 cricket pavilion, are examples. Sometimes we look at the ‘way we were’ and compare it with the way we are now. These perspectives usually result in a conclusion that there is, in spite of all the inevitable changes, an enduring ‘je ne sais quoi’ about the School. Former students and staff often comment on this when they return to visit us. The nurturing of character and community and the encouragement of achievement are identifiable leitmotivs in the evolution of the School.
We have created this website to further our work of making our Archives accessible to all who are members of the School community. If you are visiting this website and are not associated with Leighton Park we are pleased to invite you to view the wide range of publicly available images and texts. We hope you will understand, , however, that, for a number of reasons, full access to some sections is restricted to members of the School community. Please contact us if you would like to request full access, stating your reasons.
We hope you will find it easy to explore this website, and we refer you to the User Information section for instructions and conditions of use.
To make an enquiry or to arrange an appointment to visit the Archives, please contact us by email: archives@leightonpark.com or by writing to us at the school address: The Archivist, Leighton Park, Shinfield Rd, Reading RG2 7ED.
John Allinson, School Archivist