A former school that controversially shut down leaving pupils with nowhere to go and has been empty ever since could be turned into a boutique hotel and restaurant.

Penn School, a day and boarding school in Church Road, shut down within weeks of a shock announcement that it had suffered a “considerable drop in student numbers and income” in July 2015.

Despite a campaign by devastated parents and pupils to raise £1 million to save it, it shut down and was sold to the government with the intention of turning it into a free school.

But the Department for Education told the Bucks Free Press earlier this year that the site had been deemed “surplus to requirements” – and was sold again after three applications to turn it into a school were refused.

Now it has been revealed that a private company has plans to turn it into a boutique hotel and restaurant and restore the historic site to its “former glory”.

The private company that now owns the site has not been revealed, but in a statement to the Bucks Free Press, they said: “In July 2021, Rayners was sold by the Department for Education (DfE) and is now under private ownership.

“The house and grounds, which are in a very poor state of repair, will, over time, be restored to their former glory.

“It is understood that there will be particular interest in the use of this estate and subject to local planning approval, the intention is to turn the house into a boutique hotel and restaurant.

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“If this is not achievable, other uses will need to be considered. Since the sale has only just completed, things are at a very early stage but as proposals emerge, local consultation will be undertaken with residents as part of the planning process.

“Any proposals will take account of the building’s listed status and the need to preserve this magnificent estate.”

It is expected that a new website will be set up “as soon as possible” to share the latest updates on the site with residents.

Residents have so far welcomed the news as a positive for the village after a tough six years for the Penn School site.

Andrew Pinto wrote: “Brilliant news! We need a nice restaurant in the village. I hope there’s a really nice gym/wellness centre and spa too.”

Sue Champion added: “Great news for the area and job opportunities too. Really pleased to hear this.”

Samantha Barratt-Singh said: “That could be amazing! Somewhere really nice to go for dinner and someone also said, a nice gym/sports facilities would be a bonus.”

Harriett Woolley added: “Sounds like a great idea and will be good to get these beautiful buildings restored.”

The former school is also known as Rayners, a country house that was built by solicitor and businessman Sir Philip Rose, a friend of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, in 1847.