A FORMER pupil left £2.1million in her will to a north Hampshire boarding school.

Jessie Flower, who died in 2011, included the gift to the foundation charity of Lord Wandsworth College, in Long Sutton.

The money will go towards funding the school fees for pupils who have faced challenges in their home lives, including the death of a parent, serious illness or those with foster parents.

Mrs Flower and her sister Elsie attended Gosden House in Bramley in the 1930s, which was the college’s girls’ school, following the death of their father when they were young.

Headmaster Fergus Livingstone said: “Mrs Flower’s bequest is a very significant gift for our foundation.

“Mrs Flower was not only grateful for her own education, but could see the value of a boarding school education for children in a similar situation in today’s environment.

“Her decision to support our charity in this way is a huge endorsement of the work that we continue to do here and will bring significant progress to our programme to refinance the foundation as it enters its second century.”

The trustees of the foundation will invest the sum into the William and Jessie Fund to fund the school fees for the 50 foundation pupils who currently attend the college.

The school site in Long Sutton was originally bought using a £1.2million bequest by Lord Wandsworth, who wanted to help children who had lost parents through agricultural accidents.

Since the college opened its doors in 1922, more than 2,500 pupils have received support from the foundation including England rugby player Ugo Monye, who left in 2001.

The bequest brings the total given to the foundation in the past five years to more than £3.3million.