The following is taken from the notes of the Hickling Local History Group:

The School building was opened on 19 January 1861, designed to accommodate 70 children. At this time (Census of 1861) the population of the village was 769. The general standards of education in Hickling and England at this time were low.  Of 114 people married in Hickling between 1851 and 1860, 67 (35 men and 32 women) could not sign their names, and made a mark.

In 1861 the School consisted of the present main hall and a lobby / cloakroom; with the School bell, which now faces The Street, over the entrance in Eastfield Road.