| Admin_History | The English Community of the Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre (also sometimes referred to as the English Sepulchrines) was founded by Susan Hawley when on the day she was professed, 8 October 1642, she, together with three others, arrived in Liège to found a convent of Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre. The Community was founded so that English girls could have the education, which due to the Penal Laws they could not have in England, and so that English Catholic women would be able to join a Religious Order.
Because of the volatile political situation in the 1790s, a decision was taken to move the Community and school to England. This was an epic journey. After short spells in London, Yorkshire, Dean House in Wiltshire, by February 1799 the Community were finally settled at New Hall, near Chelmsford in Essex. The Community re-established the school there. Apart from evacuation during the Second World War (to Newnham Paddox, near Rugby) the Community lived, prayed, taught and worked at New Hall until 2006.
In 1947, a Preparatory School was founded at Goodings, near Newbury, and remained there until it was relocated in 1953 to a bigger campus at Denford Park in Hungerford, which closed in 1967. A Religious Community lived at the school during all this time.
In December 2003 the Community decided to move from New Hall to continue its own development in other areas and a separate trust to take forward the future development of the school was established in July 2005.
From their foundation the Community had Jesuits serving them as Chaplains. |