Introduction:
Norwood House was built in the eighteenth century (around
1760) for Jonathan Midgley, a lawyer who was three times
Mayor of Beverley. It was probably designed by Thomas Atkinson
of York, one of the leading Yorkshire architects in the
reign of George III. Together with the gardens and grounds
it has been described by the Garden History Society as a
very good example of a gentleman's residence and mini-estate.
Architecturally important:
The house contains various architecturally important features
including a fine staircase, plasterwork on walls and ceilings,
fireplaces and original woodwork. The exterior is notable
for its elegant facade of attractive brickwork, stone dressings
and ornamentation. The garden to the rear of the house still
exists in its original form, including a ha ha separating
the lawns from the rest of the grounds. In 1907 Norwood
House was purchased by the East Riding County Council from
the owners at that time, the Broadley family, for use as
a school. The Beverley High School for Girls opened in 1908
with Norwood House forming a major part of the school's
accommodation. It was used as classrooms, staff living accommodation,
boarding pupils' dormitories, library, kitchen and school
dining room. This usage continued, with some modifications
(boarding had ceased by the end of World War II although
some staff members continued to live in Norwood House for
some years afterwards) and the library continued to be used
by the school until the autumn of the year 2000 when that
function transferred to the new resource centre which had
been built between Norwood House and the main school building.
Beverley High School Association:
For some years the Beverley High School Association ("Old
Girls") have been very concerned about the state of
the building which, although it had been maintained to allow
its use as part of the High School, was gradually deteriorating
as clearly the school had insufficient funds for any but
the most essential and basic maintenance. Much effort was
put into contacting various relevant agencies but little
could be done until the house reverted to the care of the
East Riding of Yorkshire Council. BHSA formed a Norwood
House Sub-Committee and meetings were held to which various
interested parties were invited including the Member of
Parliament for Beverley, James Cran, local historians, councillors
and members of the Beverley Civic Society. Representations
were also made to the Minister for Culture and the response
was very positive. An initial meeting was held with the
Chief Executive of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council
and several of his colleagues which proved to be sufficiently
encouraging to take the matter further.
The Charity:
It was decided, after taking legal advice, to form a Company
Limited by Guarantee to be known as Norwood House Beverley
Limited and this company was registered at Companies House
on 24 November 2000, registered number 4113706. The members
of the company are as follows: Directors: Mrs Gillian
Taylor (Company Chairman), Mr John Markham (Vice-Chairman),
Mr Rixon Matthews, The Rev. Stephen Deas, Professor John
Wilton-Ely, and Mrs Felicity Redfern (Beverley Town Councillor).
Company Secretary: Mrs Astrid White. (All unpaid and non-profit-making)
(Gill Taylor and Astrid White are both former pupils of
Beverley High School and the other directors are local
people with a considerable pool of expertise). The company's
bankers are Lloyds TSB plc, Beverley, and professional
advisors are Mr Mark Warburton, Solicitor, partner, Andrew
M. Jackson & Co., and Mr Mark Sharpley, Accountant,
partner, Smailes Goldie & Co. A Business Plan was
produced and this was submitted to Mr Darryl Stephenson,
Chief Executive of E.R.Y.C. and at a subsequent meeting
it was agreed in principle that Norwood House Beverley
Ltd would take over Norwood House on a 125-year lease
with a view to restoring it for the benefit of the people
of Beverley and the increasing number of visitors to the
area for use as a Georgian museum and other amenities
such as meeting rooms, possible registration for wedding
ceremonies, restaurant etc. Charitable Status has been
applied for (now accepted) in order to take advantage
of various forms of grant aid and some local publicity
has already been generated. Fund-raising will be of major
importance in the future.
Volunteers:
It is foreseen that many volunteers will be required and
the company looks forward to welcoming local people to
take advantage of the many and varied skills which will
be required. Areas where help will be needed include fundraising,
housekeeping, gardening, office administration including
I.T. skills, and quite possibly manual skills (under supervision)
such as joinery, interior decorating and working with
metal. It is expected that a Volunteer Co-ordinator would
be appointed to liaise with the CVS and other bodies and
the volunteers themselves. This is a major project for
Beverley people and will undoubtedly be very interesting
and rewarding for all who are willing to become involved
and give as generously as possible of their time
