Visited Wispers School for Girls in Haselmere with Flubbera87….. It was a first class explore with plenty of hedge hugging and stealth moves due to the grounds men lurking around the main building not to mention the sports hall seemed to be in use with a minibus load of people milling around the entrance!! Anyway Flubbs found the way in and off we went though plenty of rooms and corridors. We had some excellent finds such as the safe and a cellar…. Spent the afternoon here undisturbed and then wandered off down the main driveway! Not going to waffle about the history of the place as Rookinella has already done that in her excellent report here…
But I will say that the main house at the school was originally known as Oak Hall. The Hall was built around 1910 for the Scottish landscape and portrait painter James Coutts Michie and his wife who had married the previous year.
Oak Hall is a fine imposing house built in the Elizabethan style. It has large bay windows, huge gables and the left wing has battlements. The chimneys are built in groups of four at right angles to each other in the manner of Tudor builders. I presume the design was to make it look like an Elizabethan country house.
So here are some photos….
After taking note of what to do if we came across “unwelcome visitors” we pushed on!
The safe door…
Inside the safe, complete with wine racks for all the teachers vintage plonk... Alas none was left for us…
Apologies! It had to be done! Haha!
Stairs to the cellar…
This painting was still hanging on the wall in the dining room….
The main panelled room with huge bay window and fireplace…
Ornate carvings lead up the stairs on the solid wood balustrades…
The early stages of urban decay usually starts with Ivy!
Help yourself to tea or coffee on your way out…
And finally the architect’s impression of the development, which appears to bring new build together with the existing old mansion house to create a luxury care home village called Oak Hall Care Home, planning obtained by Nicolas James Group on behalf of Manor House Senior Living....
But I will say that the main house at the school was originally known as Oak Hall. The Hall was built around 1910 for the Scottish landscape and portrait painter James Coutts Michie and his wife who had married the previous year.
Oak Hall is a fine imposing house built in the Elizabethan style. It has large bay windows, huge gables and the left wing has battlements. The chimneys are built in groups of four at right angles to each other in the manner of Tudor builders. I presume the design was to make it look like an Elizabethan country house.
So here are some photos….
After taking note of what to do if we came across “unwelcome visitors” we pushed on!
The safe door…
Inside the safe, complete with wine racks for all the teachers vintage plonk... Alas none was left for us…
Apologies! It had to be done! Haha!
Stairs to the cellar…
This painting was still hanging on the wall in the dining room….
The main panelled room with huge bay window and fireplace…
Ornate carvings lead up the stairs on the solid wood balustrades…
The early stages of urban decay usually starts with Ivy!
Help yourself to tea or coffee on your way out…
And finally the architect’s impression of the development, which appears to bring new build together with the existing old mansion house to create a luxury care home village called Oak Hall Care Home, planning obtained by Nicolas James Group on behalf of Manor House Senior Living....
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