Location
Church Square, Leighton Buzzard

History
Built in 1855 for John Dollin Bassett of Bassett's Bank, this house is situated at the end, and facing down the length of the High Street. The building is in the grounds of the original Leigh Manor House and a number of the buildings from the original Prebendal Manor House remain in the grounds e.g. the 'Temple'.

In 1866, John Dollin Bassett moved to live with his son Francis Bassett at The Heath, Plantation Road and the house was taken over by Mr Theodore Harris (a partner of Mr Bassett).

The author Mary Norton (1903 - 1992) spent many years of her childhood living at Cedars House, and she based "Firbank Hall" in her famous book "The Borrowers" on Cedars House.

Subsequently, the building was used as a cottage hospital, and then finally it was purchased by the Education Committee and in March 1921 the Cedars Secondary School held its first entrance exam and opened later that year. Further change occurred with the introduction of Comprehensive Secondary Education and the adoption of a Lower, Middle and Upper School system in the County. Cedars was to become an Upper Scool and as a result it was decided that a new purpose built site would be required and in 1973 the School moved to its present location in Mentmore Road, Linslade. At the same time the old school became Leighton Middle School, which it still is today.