Downsend School Ashtead Lodge - 1372-385439

Downsend School is a co-educational independent school for pupils aged between two and thirteen years. It is located in Ashtead, Leatherhead and Epsom, in Surrey, UK.

Downsend was founded by and for nearly a century owned and headmastered by three generations of the Linford family. A. H. Linford had started Peterborough Lodge, a preparatory school for about 100 boys aged 5 to 15, including 5 to 10 boarders, at 143 Finchley Road, Hampstead, about 1898. During the First World War he opened Downsend for the boarders from Peterborough Lodge, and in 1940 after the beginning of the Second World War the two schools amalgamated at the Downsend site between Leatherhead and Ashtead. A. H. Linford's son Cedric T. Linford became headmaster of Downsend, and remained as such, also teaching Latin and Greek, until his son Christopher J. Linford took over in 1968. The school was run as a non-denominational preparatory school for boys aged 8 to 13. It achieved a good record for scholarships to leading public schools, especially during the long period when it had a mathematics master called Denys Straker. In 1968 the school had 220 boys; Christopher Linford expanded the business to four schools in the area educating a total of around 900 boys and girls. In 2002 no one in the family was willing to take on the heavy responsibility of running the school and it was sold to Asquith Court Schools Ltd.

It is now a school for boys and girls, and takes on pupils from 6 to 13 years of age. Unusually the school does not have charitable status, being run as a profitable business by Cognita Limited (chaired by Chris Woodhead). Downsend's headmaster is Mr Ian Thorpe, previously head of Chinthurst School. The sports ground is on site. Though the school goes from 6 to 13, there are also 3 lodges which admit children from 2½ to 6. Downsend school costs £3310 - £4010 a term.