Brentwood Ursulines Archive

This archive includes material relating to the Brentwood Ursulines from 1900 to 2020, as well as to the foundress Mother Mary Clare, dating from c.1846 onward. The archive comprises the personal papers of mothers superior, the general governance of the community, its sisters, its formation, its various communities in Basildon, Brentwood, Billericay and Westcliffe, and its apostolate, including especially its schools in Brentwood and elsewhere.

The Ursuline Convent at Brentwood, Essex was founded by Mother Mary Clare on 23rd April 1900. Since 1957 it has been known as the Congregation of the Sisters of the Order of St Ursula of the Diocese of Brentwood. The Ursulines are a monastic order of nuns dedicated to education and poor relief. Although they have their roots in founded in the fifteenth-century Counter Reformation, the first Ursuline community in England was established only in 1851. As daughter house of Ursuline community at Upton, near Stratford, the Brentwood community can trace its heritage to these first Ursulines to arrive in England, from Thildonck (Tildonk), Belgium. The nuns established two schools in Brentwood – St Philomena’s for poor girls and St Mary’s for the better-off – which were amalgamated in 1918. This institution is now Brentwood Ursuline Convent High School. These were among its various apostolates, which also included the Ursuline Preparatory School, Brentwood, St Joseph’s Primary School, Dagenham and St Ursula’s Infant and Junior Schools, Harold Hill.

Collection held in banker's boxes as sorted and rationalised by Clare Walsh, 2019.

The collection has not yet been fully catalogued. For this reason, it is not normally possible to consult the collection.

Donated by the Congregation of the Sisters of the Order of St Ursula of the diocese Brentwood: transferred from Brentwood to Durham on 5th October 2021.

A few printed books, some finance office material and school records have been retained by the Ursulines at Brentwood, as well as records of all former sisters.

Permission to make any published use of material from the collection must be sought in advance from the Sub-Librarian, Special Collections (e-mail PG.Library@durham.ac.uk) and, where appropriate, from the copyright owner. The Library will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material.

The contents of the collection have not yet been fully appraised.