Rookwood School

> "*Alis Grave Nil
>  Nothing is heavy for those who have wings.*"
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> ― Rookwood School Motto
> The Whispers in the Walls
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* Building
* School Logo

**Rookwood School** is one of the main locations in the *Scarlet and Ivy* series and is mentioned in *The Violet Veil Mysteries*. It was once a grand house belonging to the Wootton's family and has since been turned into an all girls boarding school under Eliza Mary Wootton's Will.

## History

### Story

Rookwood school was once a grand house belonging to a well-off family called the Wootton's. The last known living relative was Eliza Mary Wootton, the last lady of Rookwood. Eliza Wootton was married to Marcus James Wootton, a wealthy man, and one point, they both had three children. Isabella Wootton, the only child that is known of, died in infancy. It is not said what happened to the other 2 children, but they died before either of them could inherit the house. Whilst not much is known about the life of the Wootton's, it is known that they started to run out of money. Slowly they started letting go of the staff of their house.

Eventually they began to run the house as a school, and the Wootton's employed Edgar Bartholomew to help run it, whilst Eliza lived in what is now known as Matron's apartment. It seems that by this time, Marcus Wootton had passed away, and Eliza was left by herself. At some point, a woman named Emily Stone is employed for 2 years, before getting fired for suspicious acts, and for stealing things from the school for her daughter.

When Eliza died, Henry Bartholomew replaced her original will with a fake one, and claimed that his father had founded the school to provide an education for his daughters, and the daughters of his influential friends, a lie he would continue to tell his students for decades. However, Eliza Wootton had thought this would happen. She hid another copy of the will in an iron safe behind her portrait, in the hopes that Mr Bartholomew wouldn't find it.

### Late 1800's-Early 1900's

During his time as headmaster, Mr Bartholomew is responsible for drowning a student, whilst enforcing a punishment on her. The girl's name was Emmeline Adel, and she was a prefect for the school, who had witnessed how Mr Bartholomew was punishing his students. She started the Whispers in the Walls, a club where students devoted their lives to revealing the truth about Mr Bartholomew, and what really went on at Rookwood.

A few decades later, Headmaster Bartholomew fell ill, and needed to take a leave of absence. He left the school in the care of Guinevere Fox. Whilst working as Headmistress, Miss Fox is reunited with her daughter, Rebecca Finch. Wanting to keep the fact that she has a daughter, Guinevere gives Rebecca a job teaching ballet at the school so she will stay quiet.

Miss Fox is eventually outed by Ivy Grey and Ariadne Flitworth for stealing funds from the school. She goes on the run and Mr Bartholomew returns to his position as headmaster.

After only a term back in the position, Mr Bartholomew is finally arrested for the murder of Emmeline Adel. Scarlet Grey and Ivy Grey trick him into confessing, and the police take him away. After Mr Bartholoew's arrest, Mrs Knight takes over as Headmistress for the school.

## Houses

* Richmond
* Evergreen
* Mayhew

## Staff

### Headteachers

* Edgar Bartholomew (arrested, later deceased)
* Guinevere Fox (arrested)
* Mrs Knight (current)

### Teachers

* Rebecca Finch
* Madame Zelda
* Eunice Bowler
* Madame Lovelace
* Miss Caulfield
* Catastrophe Jones

### Maintenance Staff

* Matron
* Caretaker

## Known Students

### Former students

* Sara Louise Smith
* Ida Jane Grey
* Emmeline Adel
* Alice Jefferson
* Elizabeth Fitzgerald
* Katy Morwen
* Talia Yahalom
* Bronwyn Jones
* Catastrophe Jones

### Current Students

* Violet Adams
* Penny Winchester
* Scarlet Grey
* Nadia Sayani
* Ivy Grey
* Ariadne Flitworth
* Rose Fitzwarren
* Ebony McCloud
* Muriel Witherspoon
* Dot Campbell
* Josephine Wilcox
* Meena Sayani
* Pansy Jenson

## Uniform

The school uniform consists of a white long-sleeved blouse, a black pleated skirt, a purple striped tie with the Rookwood crest at the end and a pair of stockings to match. As shown in the US covers, the pleated skirt has been swapped for a pinafore. In the Russian covers, a dark cerise vest is included in the uniform.

## Trivia

* The appearance of the school was inspired by the school Sophie Cleverly attended as a child.[*citation needed*]
* Rookwood School was mentioned in *A Case of Grave Danger*, the first book in *The Violet Veil Mysteries*.