In 1714 an agreement was made for the establishment of the Wigton Free Grammar School. After youngsters were taught for several years in church rooms, a dedicated schoolhouse opened its doors on Market Hill in Wigton in 1730, thanks largely to the generosity of two brothers, John and the Reverend Robert Thomlinson of Aikhead.

In 1899, a new girls’ grammar school, to be known as the Thomlinson Grammar School for Girls was established in Westmorland House, the site of the current Thomlinson Junior School.

At the same time, the Nelson School for boys, funded from the estate of local businessman Joseph Nelson, was opened on the Floshfield site, which is where The Nelson Thomlinson School sits today.

The two schools were amalgamated in 1952 to form The Nelson Thomlinson School and in 1969 Wigton Secondary School was incorporated to become a split-site comprehensive school. In 1995 they merged to form today’s single-site school.

Twenty boys attended the first school in 1730. There are now some 1,250 pupils.

In 2014, we celebrated with events and site tours for members of the community. A Tercentenary Concert was held with the community and alumni invited to view displays and enjoy stories from the past.