The Foundation Girls

I was talking to the young lady who helps me in the house about the cost of school uniforms especially if .as in her case. they can only be bought from one supplier.
How fortunate I was! The school I attended from 7 years old till 11 was started by the wife of the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Tenison, in 1706. Its first pupils were 12 poor girls who were given clothes and shoes so that they could go to school. Through the years the school grew and the practice continued of choosing 12 poor girls to receive this bounty. They were known as the Foundation Girls. I was proud to be one of these. We were given a uniform, winter and summer in return our parents had to sign to say that we would attend school regularly, clean and suitably clad: we would say our prayers each day: we would attend Church and Sunday School: we must be baptised and we would be of good behaviour in and out of school.
On Church Feast days such as Ascension Day, we 12 girls would dress in very old costumes and process to church. People would come to their doors to see us pass by. The costume, presumably replicas of the original uniform, consisted of a long faded blue skirt, a white blouse, a sort of frock coat with elbow length sleeves. We wore large white collars like the Puritans wore, a little white bonnet and long lacy ,yellow mittens.
My mother must have been very thankful for this assistance.
I don't have any pictures, more's the pity but in about 1933 British Movietone News came to the school to make a film about us in our costumes. I was told about it by someone who saw the film but I have never managed to track it down.