Winchester college graduate John Hanson sought to change this by leaving a £200 endowment in his will,[3] to found a new free school for the children of Andover.

The original school opened in 1582 in the grounds of St Mary's Church, accessed via Andover's famous Norman arch.

An open-air swimming pool was built in the 1930s, and in the 1950s the school was extended with state-of-the-art science labs and a new dining hall, with integral kitchens and an impressive theatrical stage.

More new buildings, known as the A Block, were added, providing art studios, a large sports hall and well equipped home economics classrooms.

The Croye Close buildings were demolished and the site is now a small housing estate, with roads named after Lord Denning and Richard Kemys.