Timecapsule Marks Regeneration of School's Old Sports Ground

With the regeneration of Wallfield, RGS' old sports ground, close to completion, First Form pupils were invited by the site's developer to bury a time capsule within the mansion’s gardens. The students wrote a letter to people of the future telling them what life was like in 2008, referring to modern technology, global warming and the search for a cure for cancer. These letters have been buried in the capsule along with photographs of the school both past and present and a copy of The History of The Old Reigatian Association. Other items included an original plan of Wallfield, a bottle of local beer, a Surrey Mirror and several pieces of memorabilia from Micklefield School, whose students also took part. Amongst the guests at the burial were BBC newscaster Nicholas Owen and the Mayor of Reigate and Banstead, Councillor Mrs Dorothy Ross-Tomlin.

Wallfield House was built in the 1840s and was designed by the architect who designed London’s Victoria Station. He lived in Bell Street, Reigate, in what is currently Richer Sounds but until recently was The Ancient House Bookshop. Having been vacated by Reigate Art College more than 20 years ago, Wallfield fell into a state of disrepair and was subject to significant neglect and vandalism. The Grade II listed building is currently undergoing a multi-million pound eco-restoration and four new detached properties have been built in the grounds.

Many Old Reigatians played on the sports pitches at Wallfield prior to the opening of the school's new sports ground at Hartswood in the early 1980s. On games days, pupils walked through the town at lunch time to reach the fields on the A25, a few hundred yards to the west of the High Street. Wallfield’s house was home to Reigate Art College, however the school had use of the upper floors for their changing rooms. It is probably the shabbiness and complexity of the changing arrangements that are remembered more than the pitches themselves! The History of The Old Reigatian Association describes how the semi-clad players would come down the stairs for their post-match shower in the building’s bowels passed by parents, home and visiting, as they picked their way through the liquid mud on every step to reach the tearoom at the top of the building. Despite the chaos, it is remembered with great warmth and affection.

May 2008