Kelsick History
John Kelsick’s Will
Kelsick’s Educational Foundation originates from the will of John Kelsick, who died at the age of 24 in 1723 leaving a substantial estate. John Kelsick was the son of George Kelsick, a provision merchant and cooper in Church Street.
John’s early wealth was an accumulation of parcels of land forming part of the ‘Richmond fee in the Manor of Ambleside’. This land holding was significant and acquired during the seventeenth century principally, we believe, by John’s grandfather. The land was left to John’s father George, who died without making a will, and thus it was that young John inherited the entire estate. However, John was in poor health and made a will a matter of days before his death in 1723, leaving the bulk of his property to three Trustees, John Mackereth, George Cumpstone and Thomas Knott. John instructed the Trustees to obtain land close to the Chapel of St Anne’s on Kirkstone Road in order to build a free school for boys and a provide a salary and house for the school master.
The free school was subsequently built in 1725 on a piece of land known as ‘The Parracke’. It appears that the rental income produced from the land left by John Kelsick was sufficient to fund the running of the school for the next 150 years or so. Kelsick also granted some early 99-year leases on several parcels of land for new buildings as the village of Ambleside expanded after 1850.
The demand for education grew in the second half of the nineteenth century so there was pressure for a larger school to be built, for the benefit of girls as well as boys. Once again, Kelsick’s land provided the money and assets were raised by further granting of long leases for development.
A new free school for boys was built close to St Mary’s Church, with a girls’ school following soon after. By the beginning of the 20th century the Kelsick’s Educational Foundation had disposed of much of the original ‘Richmond fee’ lands on 99-year leases, resulting in a considerable income from ground rents.
This enabled the Foundation to fund the building of the Kelsick Co-educational Grammar School at Stock Ghyll, opened in 1907. The rising costs of education led the Trustees as Governors to decide that it should be free only to those children who could pass a selection examination.
Kelsick Grammar School closed in 1965 with the advent of comprehensive education and the opening of the Lakes School at Troutbeck Bridge. The proceeds from further disposal of properties continued throughout the 1960s, creating an investment income never before available to the Foundation.
As a result of the changes, a new Scheme under the name of Kelsick’s Educational Foundation was approved by the Charity Commissioners in 1967. In addition to continuing to support the local schools, this enabled the Trustees, for the first time, to give grant aid to support a much broader range of educational pursuits for young people in Ambleside and its surrounding area.
The Foundation still retains significant property holdings in Ambleside amounting to about 40 buildings and parcels of land. Kelsick’s property portfolio includes the Kelsick Centre, Fellinis restaurant and cinema, and a further cinema building known formerly as the old Junior School, together with shops, other business premises and residential properties. The combined income generated allows the Foundation’s Trustees to continue to provide grants to support the education of children and young people living in the area, according to John Kelsick’s wishes as set out in his will nearly 300 years ago.