| Administrative History | Most of the deeds for the early endowment of the school are missing and only known from the recitals in a deed of 10 March 1718 enrolled in Chancery. Originally Michael Willoughby of Risley and Catherine, his wife, gave 20 nobles yearly to be paid to a curate and schoolmaster in the village. Catherine Willoughby by her will of 1593 left Sir Henry Willoughby, bt, of Risley £100 to purchase an annuity towards the stipend for the curate and schoolmaster. In pursuance of this trust on 21 September 1632, Sir Henry granted to trustees a rent charge of £13 6s 8d issuing from the manor of Wilsthorpe, which was augmented a month later to 20 marks.
Sir Henry's grand-daughter, Elizabeth Grey of Risley, built a school house for a master and usher and purchased lands for their maintenance. In 1718 she conveyed these and other lands purchased by her father Anchitel Grey, husband of Anne, daughter and co-heiress of Sir Henry Willoughby, to trustees, confirming her family's earlier donations, laying down detailed provisions for the running of the school. Under the terms of this, Risley Latin School trust as it came to be known, boys from Risley, Breaston, and neighbouring parishes were to be taught grammar and the classics by the headmaster in the Latin School and reading, writing, arithmetic and the catechim by the usher or undermaster in the English School.
By her will of 21 June 1720 proved in 1722, Elizabeth Grey left, amongst other legacies to the school trust, money to build a school for girls and to endow two posts, one a schoolmistress to teach girls drawn from the area to read, knit and sew, the other an assistant to the usher to teach the girls to write and cast accounts.
In 1896 the Lower or English School was taken under the inspection of Derbyshire County Council Education Department and was renamed Risley Lower Grammar School. The girls' school was closed at this time. Under the scheme of 1914 the Trust became known as the Risley Educational Foundation, the Upper or Latin School was closed and the Lower Latin School became a Public Elementary School. A new scheme for the Foundation's scholarships was introduced. |
| Custodial History | Deposited in Derbyshire Record Office in November 1983. Added to the catalogue as part of the FindersKeepers project by volunteer Vicky Kerrigan. |