On Thursday 20th October over 2000 pupils, parents, teachers, former pupils and guests packed into Westminster Abbey to celebrate 200 years of Caterham School.
The School was founded by the Rev. John Townsend in 1811 to provide an education for the sons of Congregational Ministers. Initially there were six pupils, about whom the visiting committee commented: ‘…two or three promise to be good Latin scholars. They appear clean, healthy and cheerful.’
The School moved to Caterham from Lewisham 1884 and is now thriving, with a community of over 1000 pupils in the Preparatory and Senior Schools.
Headmaster Julian Thomas said: ‘The service at Westminster Abbey was a fitting way to mark one of the most important events in the history of the School. We wanted our students to be the focus of the service so it was particularly gratifying that more than 130 pupils were involved with instrumental, vocal, dance and drama performances that contributed so much to a memorable day. I hope that it is a day that all our students will remember for the rest of their lives.”