Schools offers vegetarian fee cut

The school's vegetarian ethos was established by its founder in 1882

A private school in Gloucestershire is seeking sixth form pupils to take up a special vegetarian scholarship.

The £15,000-a-year Wycliffe College in Stonehouse has offered the 10% discount to non-meat eaters since it was founded in 1882.

But in recent years, no one has taken up the £1,500 scholarship and new candidates are being sought.

The school's vegetarian ethos was established by its founder, Methodist and vegetarian GW Sibly.

Good all-rounder

Spokeswoman Melanie Gray said: "People in the past have taken it up but we haven't had any candidates for several years.

"It would be great to get some good candidates to come forward.

"They would have to be truly vegetarian of course. They couldn't be caught having a burger. But not eating meat is not the only criteria.

"They would have to be a good all round student and fit in with the school academically and with its ethos.

"I don't know any other school that offers something like this. Many of the teachers are vegetarian and I am myself and the food that the school provides is very good."

In 1910, Sibly's son experimented on the children in Springfield, one of the school's houses, by giving them a vegetarian diet.

He closely monitored their health, physical development and intellectual achievements and compared them with those who ate meat.

Former teacher and pupil, Frank Smith, wrote in a history of the school: "He published a monograph, 'Vegetarianism and the Growing Boy', which attempted to show that the boys in his house were invariably fitter, as judged by success in athletic competition, as those in the other houses.

"Although his results were impressive, his methods of proof were not strictly scientific."

In 1947 the World Vegetarian Congress was held at the school.