He won a scholarship to Emanuel School in Battersea, and there became a prefect, Head of House, and a sergeant in the Officers' Training Corps.
[10][11] He taught again at Emanuel, then in 1923 moved to Trinity College, Glenalmond in Scotland to work with the sixth form, developing his ideas about teaching this age group.
In 1928 a broken engagement led to a breakdown and treatment by Hugh Crichton-Miller, who along with John Rawlings Rees later asked Lyward to help with some of their patients.
[17] The stable block and two sets of gate piers along with a garden wall are Grade II listed.
'[21] A former Finchden boy recalls his initial interview with Lyward: 'He had a playful manner which threw you from the serious to the teasing and back again faster than I could keep up with.
[23][24] Despite the boldness of his therapeutic approach, Lyward was basically a shy man, with a lifelong insecurity that gave him a chameleon-like quality designed to gain the support and approval of whomever he was with[25][26][27] One colleague's view was that Finchden provided a sheltered environment for Lyward, where his position protected him from those outside pressures with which he was unable to cope, while at the same time allowing him to be useful in helping those who lived there.
[34] On a first meeting he could put an anxious, self-protective or aggressive person at their ease, 'disarming' them and making them feel secure and accepted just as themselves .
[35][36][37] One psychiatrist felt that Lyward's major contribution was to recognise that the task of the therapist and teacher is 'to engage the other … in such a way that the need for masks diminishes and he person can respond fully from his "center".
'[38] Part of the experience of being at Finchden was to have the individual's sense of trust and security widened from Lyward to include one or more of the staff, and eventually to the community as a whole.
[43] The Finchden experience for most involved being allowed to regress and then to grow again through a much more secure and creative boyhood in a process Lyward sometimes called 'reweaning'.
[44][45] When appearing for a boy in court, and being asked by the Judge what sort of a place Finchden was, Lyward said 'I think I would call it a nursery, my Lord.
'[46] Lyward often spoke of the 'depth' of the group experience at Finchden, and of how living at that depth is what provided the primary therapeutic benefit.
[51] One statement that Lyward made that perhaps comes closest to defining what he meant by this depth of group life was: 'The emerging discipline of non-contractual living together without labels, formalized sanctions, or superficial fairness makes for play and recognition and for awareness and the genuine 'please' and 'thank you' that reveal non-face-saving health.
For special occasions the kitchen was busy until late the night before, to provide an array of cakes, petit fours, eclairs and brandy snaps, all made from scratch.
It was common for visitors to be sceptical that this bunch of unprepossessing looking boys had produced such elegant baking and pastries.
Partly because the boys and staff involved had time through the day to work on a production, the standard of the acting and the set tended to be quite high.
After Lyward died in 1973, and Finchden Manor was in the process of winding down, a rock musical, The Holy Grail, was written and performed by boys and staff, which reflected some of their preoccupations and emotions at that time.
[66][67] If Lyward called for a 'Command Performance' the boys were challenged to put together a variety show with a few hours' or one day's notice, consisting of skits, recitals and musical numbers.
This might be in reaction to some trouble caused by Finchden boys when off the premises, but more commonly by Lyward's sense that the community was losing cohesion because of too much coming and going and external involvements.
[75] When Lyward felt that a particular issue had arisen that required the attention of the whole community he would call a 'session' which all boys and staff attended.
[78][79] In the words of one of his staff '[Lyward] saw that the loosening up of compulsive patterns and reactions could be helped by paradoxical treatment which surprised, even shocked, and forced the boy to ask himself questions.
[81] A friend and colleague said, 'There has been much misunderstanding about George Lyward's emphasis on the value of unfairness in fostering creative educational situations … The interesting thing is that though this creates a degree of uncertainty or even shock, it has not resulted in envy or resentment because there has always been a sense of security at a deeper level.
[95] It did not take long for a new boy or staff member, or sometimes even a visitor, to encounter the stern aspect of Lyward's approach.
[103] He was much in demand as a lecturer to training colleges and educational and social work audiences at Oxford, London, Durham and elsewhere.
Anybody who arrived with a musical skill went on from strength to strength.’[113] As Finchden Manor’s reputation grew, many teaching and social work students were sent on placements as part of their course, or came in groups on day visits to meet with Lyward.
[114][115] Mr Lyward’s Answer[116] was published in 1956, written by the writer, poet and former commando Michael Burn, who lived for some time as a member of the community at Finchden Manor in order to research the book.
Burn said of Lyward that he was '… stern, forbearing, courteous, light of touch; one of life's beloved teachers; one of the life-givers.
[119] The New Era, journal of the World Educational Fellowship, published a memorial issue in 1974 about the life and work of George Lyward.
[121][122] Other former residents of Finchden Manor include Alexis Korner, Francis Lickerish, Robert John Godfrey, Matthew Collings and Danny Kustow.
[123] Sydney Hopkins, author, as 'Fynn', of Mister God, This Is Anna and its two sequels, was referred to Finchden Manor as a young man[124] and was for many years afterwards a member of staff there.