The Quaker School in Newton-in-Bowland was funded by a bequest from John Brabbin, who died in 1768, and left both funds and premises to educate boys and girls from local Quaker families. A trust was established to manage the school, the object of which was 'to advance good manners and useful learning'. Children from non-Quaker families in Newton were also admitted to make the school viable. The school taught basic writing and arithmetic and did not charge attendance fees. When the post of schoolmaster became vacant in 1844, a replacement could not be found. A Quarterly Meeting committee to assist the school was set up around this time, comprising James Backhouse, Joseph Rowntree and Samuel Tuke. The trust funded six places for poor children at the National School in Newton as an alternative from 1847 onwards. A new schoolmaster was appointed in 1868 and the school continued until 1911.
From the guide to the Records of Newton School of the Society of Friends, 1736-1930, (Leeds University Library)
