Old Swinford Hospital

Old Swinford Hospital is a secondary boarding school in Oldswinford, Stourbridge, West Midlands, England that has been in continuous operation since the 17th century. It is one of 36 state boarding schools in England, meaning school fees are funded by the LEA and pupils only pay boarding fees. Girls are admitted into the sixth form as day pupils. Girls will be admitted from year 7 onwards in 2021. History Old Swinford Hospital opened in the late summer of 1667. Originally called Stourbridge Hospital, it was founded by Thomas Foley, an ironmaster and prominent local landowner, whose main estate was at Great Witley, west of Stourport in Worcestershire, but with strong Stourbridge connections. It was to educate 60 boys from "poor but honest" families nominated by specified parishes in Worcestershire, Staffordshire and Warwickshire. The school was sometimes named as Foley's blue coat school or hospital, or Oldswinford Hospital Endowed School. The school had increased to 70 boys by 1868. Houses The school consists of eight boarding houses: There is one junior boarding house, Prospect House, which is for Year 7 boarders and one senior boarding house, Foster House, which is for Year 13 boarders. Foster was previously a boarding house for years 8-13 and reopened in October 2016 following redevelopment. The other six houses (Baxter, Dudley, Foley, Maybury, Potter and Witley) house boarders from year 8 to 12.