For nearly 500 years, the buildings we now call The Old School served generations of pupils in Cuckfield. Originally founded around 1512 as Cuckfield Free Grammar School by Edmund Fleur, a London Merchant Taylor, it was created to educate the needy children of Cuckfield and Balcombe. Over time, as funds dwindled, fee‑paying pupils became the norm.
By 1844 the school had become a National School, eventually evolving into the church‑aided primary school that remained here until the new Glebe Road site was built. Parts of the current Old School still echo its Tudor and Jacobean beginnings. The main block is thought to have taken shape around 1634 under Thomas Vicars, and later expanded in the 1870s alongside the new Victorian Hall to meet the needs of a growing village.
Holy Trinity Church purchased the buildings in 1992, transforming them into a vibrant parish and community centre. A major programme of restoration followed, uncovering hidden Tudor—and possibly even older—features that have now been carefully preserved. This work was only possible thanks to extraordinary local support: time, skills, fundraising, and generous financial gifts from both the community and the Church, including help from the Kleinwort Charitable Trust and Mid Sussex District Council.
Today, The Old School continues its long tradition of learning, gathering, and community life—just in a new and ever‑growing way.
The Old School has its own website for further information and bookings, go to www.oldschoolcuckfield.com, or email the manager, Mandi Lines at opsmanager@holytrinitycuckfield.org