Virgo Fidelis Preparatory School

Virgo Fidelis is part of a French Roman Catholic order of sisters which has two schools in Britain and several in France, Italy and Belgium. Teaching is based on Christian principles with an emphasis on caring and sensitivity towards others.

The school was founded in 1848 by Mother St Mary, under the patronage of Cardinal Wiseman. This devout Frenchwoman was a gifted teacher and under her guidance the school grew rapidly. Among the school's early supporters was Bishop Thomas Grant, who is buried in the Convent's graveyard.

The school was originally an impressive hunting lodge, once belonging to the Earls of Bristol. King George III is reputed to have used it. When Mother St Mary's father, Count Theodose le Forestier d'Osseville, bought the house and the estate for his daughter, the land extended as far as Beulah Hill.

The old hunting lodge was damaged in the Second World War. Our school has undergone many developments and improvements since those days. We have new classrooms, a hall and playgrounds. Outside, however, the grounds remain very much the same, endlessly attractive to generations of schoolchildren.