The school's motto is rendered in latin "Vita sine litteris mors est " its English translation being "Life without learning is death."

The history of the Manning's School dates back to a quarter of a century before the actual establishment of the institution, when in 1710, Thomas Manning, a Westmoreland planter, bequeathed a gift of land for the setting up of a free school in the parish of Westmoreland.

The school was established in 1738 when the Jamaica Assembly passed an Act (11 Geo.

[2] As the years progressed, the 20th Century led to the reorganization of the institution into a modern high school.

It is the most outstanding building on the entire school property and is currently used as a library and classrooms.