An abandoned 19th century boarding school could be set to become a sixth-form centre under new plans.

Bosses at the Sir Roger Manwood’s School (SRMS) in Sandwich have applied for permission to repurpose the boarding school at Manwood Grange.

Bought by the school in 1950, the building was shut during the Covid-19 pandemic and closed for good months later, with the school's governors claiming it - along with another boarding house - was financially unviable.

This was despite efforts from alumni to keep the boarding houses open, and a petition against the school’s “ethos and traditions” being put at risk attracting 1,500 signatures.

There was even a plan put forward to move affected children into the nearby Salutation hotel, which was then run by Gogglebox stars Steph and Dom Parker, for two terms to allow extra funding to be sourced to keep the boarding houses open.

When asked by KentOnline in July of that year, head teacher Lee Hunter said the buildings were likely to be repurposed if the closure was to be made permanent.

Now, planning permission is being sought to transform the building, which used to house girls, into a sixth form centre.

An excerpt from the application reads: “The sixth form centre is currently split over several small pockets around the school. As a result, it lacks its own identity and has no real ownership of space.

“Manwood Grange therefore offers an opportunity to readdress the balance of sixth form provision at the school in re-purposing the building for school use.

“The internal layout will be re-modelled to provide improvements and minor demolition being required to some of the internal walls to provide the space and correct orientation for the proposed classrooms, social spaces and offices.

“The change of use will enable the school to provide a new sixth form centre for the school containing classrooms, social and dining space, flexible study/lecture space, departmental offices and an IT room.”