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The School, Old Millhillians and former members of staff have been involved with Alford House Youth Club in Lambeth for over 100 years. This remarkable association began in 1923 when Alford House Founder Frank Briant visited Mill Hill School at the invitation of Ridgeway Housemaster, Norman Brett Jones, and spoke to the senior boys in the House about it. One or two were so interested and inspired that they volunteered at the Club after they left school. Some went on to become instrumental in the survival and success of Alford House over the next century, many have been trustees and generous donors of time and money. Their names would be familiar to OMs across the generations. There are today four OM Trustees and two former members of MHS staff.
Alford House was founded in 1884 in Briant’s words “to promote the mental, moral, physical and spiritual wellbeing of the young people of Lambeth”. The aims haven’t changed but of course the way in which they are achieved have evolved over the years. Alford House is open to young people aged 8-21 and offers a variety of sports, games, creative, educational and recreational activities in a safe and secure environment that is managed by a dedicated team of staff and volunteers. It also supports some of the most vulnerable in local schools. More details of all of this can be found on the Alford House website.
The story of Alford House and the involvement of so many members of the Mill Hill community in the past are told in this short history published in 2021 View here.
In 20201 the Trustees embarked on Alford@70-For the young people of Lambeth an ambitious and exciting plan for the refurbishment of the building which has been the Club’s home since 1950/51 to give the Club’s management what it needs to serve the young people of the area in the second half of 2020s and beyond. You can see details of Alford@70 here.
This project is being managed by the Alford House Trustees Development Committee comprising William Maunder Taylor, Nigel Baker, Jon Rosswick, Chris Lloyd and Nick Priestnall. OM Andy Halstead has also provided innumerable hours and enormous expertise ensuring the successful completion within time and budget parameters of Phase 1 and the management of Phase 2 in the second half of 2025.
Alford@70 was initially costed at £2m but construction inflation has now taken the costs top £3.2m. The cornerstone of the fundraising was the sale for development of land adjacent to the Club buildings; this was achieved in February 2023 providing around half of what is needed. A fundraising campaign led by the Chair of Trustees has secured a further million and seeks to close the gap by the end of 2025 to enable completion of Phase 2 to its full specification. Numerous OMs have generously supported the initiative for which AH is very grateful.
The future of the OM and Alford House relationship is positive as well. Then President Stephanie Jones-Miller and President-elect Graham Chase were in attendance in September 2024 when the Club celebrated the completion of Phase 1 of the buildings refurbishment and 100 years of OM involvement with Alford House.
Also in autumn 2024 there was a very exciting development when Antonio, a member of Alford House for many years joined Mill Hill School for Sixth Form as an A Better Chance Bursary holder. He is enjoying his time at MH and making the most of it. It is hoped that there will be others who follow him in the future.
Recent notable retirees from the Board of Alford House are OMs Peter Woodroffe and Martin Shaw and former member of staff Paul Bickerdike. Between them they provided over 50 years of loyal service to Alford House. A huge thank you to them.
Alford House is always happy to hear from Old Millhillians who would like to be involved with this special place which does so much great work for and with the young people of one of the most deprived boroughs of London. There are various ways OMs have been involved over the years. Please see the Trustee Brief here. If you have other ideas Alford House would love to hear them.
CONTACT US
Alford House is always happy to hear from Old Millhillians who would like to be involved with this special place which does so much great work for and with the young people of one of the most deprived boroughs of London.
If you would like to support Alford House, you can do so here. If you are interested in visiting or for more information about any aspect of Alford House, please contact the Chair of Trustees, Nick Priestnall.
Contact: Nick Priestnall nick@alfordhouse.org.uk