Tisbury Free School, Tisbury

There was a school in Tisbury in the 16th century but little is known of it. By her will of 1840 Alice Coombe left £400 for poor children in Tisbury parish, especially in Chicksgrove. By 1752 a master was being paid £13 a year to teach 26 Tisbury children in his own house, while a mistress was being paid £3 a year to teach 6 Chicksgrove children in her own house. The master could also teach reading and writing to the older children if their parents provided ink and paper. For reading, the children had to learn the catechism and say it in Tisbury church. There were two additional teachers by 1784.

In 1818 a master was teaching 20 boys and three mistresses teaching 40 children between them. Children remained at the school for about four years and the age at which they started varied. In 1833 there was a total of 40 children at the school. The school closed around 1843, when the National School was built, and the income from the Alice Coombe charity was given to the National School from 1841 to 1881. Children from the free schools at Chicksgrove and Hatch were also moved to Tisbury National School.