A PORTRAIT
This fascinating portrait of St Mary’s Church of England Primary School, and its predecessor Kirkby Lonsdale National School, offers a richly illustrated and elegantly produced account of a key aspect of Kirkby Lonsdale life in the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In telling the story of the school itself this book also tells the social history of Kirkby Lonsdale through the decades, exploring the school’s pivotal role in the community, as well as showing how events in the wider world affected school life. Based on original school records and contemporary accounts, the book describes the struggles and successes of the children, their teachers and families. Quotations, short recollections and school log book extracts give a vivid portrayal of school life as it was and as it is today. Fascinating tales of Collop Monday and Oak Bob Day, Spitfires and rosehips, lace-making and abseiling down the church tower, provide a nostalgic feast for all ages to enjoy.
A wonderful, unique record that everyone associated with the school will cherish
Back cover artwork by children from St Mary's Church of England Primary School
£9.99
A PORTRAIT
With illustrations by Jeremy Mayes
Kirkby Lonsdale National School & St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Kirkby Lonsdale National School & St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Glynis Pepperrell Audrey Phillips Jane Sparrow-Niang
Kirkby Lonsdale National School
& St Mary’s
Church of England Primary School A PORT RAIT
Foreword
S
ometimes, enthusiasm can lead to big surprises … The 20th anniversary of a building is not normally a notable milestone, but at St Mary’s School it sparked the imaginations of the pupils and the School community and led to a School History Week in June 2007. This gave an opportunity for displaying the School’s archives, which are so much richer than any of us had realised – with vivid records going back well over 100 years. There were also old photographs, and a collection of the memories of former pupils and staff. During the Week, the children experienced traditional teaching that included boys and girls having different lessons, and each class chose a decade to research and experience: so that some became evacuees, others had a Silver Jubilee party, and Year 6 decided to get into rock ‘n roll. Such a wealth of material and experience could not be allowed to disperse, and the children’s enthusiasm has been carried on by Glynis Pepperrell, Audrey Phillips and Jane Sparrow-Niang in their production of this book, an exacting task given the details and variety of the records. What they have done allows us all access to the story of this one school against the background of the events that unfolded and affected the local and national communities; often as described at the time, with an immediacy that can be compelling, in the School log-books or the local newspapers – as with the rather forlorn report in 1868 of “thinner numbers” because of mushroom gathering at 2d./lb., or the recurrent accounts of school closure because of infectious diseases. These pages trace the changes over the 150 years of the School’s life. As a National School, it was founded to bring education to poor people, mainly agricultural workers, and we can see that poverty stalked the community until well into the 20th century, despite the occasional efforts and interest of the local aristocracy and gentry. Judging
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from an entry in 1879, this was sometimes ill-directed; the School log-book recording “Another tea party … Weary work this … I believe this is the fifth tea affair this year.” Through the log-books, we are put in touch with outside events on both the national and the world stages and made to understand how real these are even away from the mainstream. And yet there are also occasional strong links with that mainstream, such as the appointment in 1889 of The Rev. John Llewelyn Davies as Chairman of the Managers of the School. After 38 years of working in large London parishes, he was ‘exiled’ to Kirkby Lonsdale but brought with him his Liberal politics and hugely influential views on educational policies. He also brought his daughter Margaret who was Secretary of the Women’s Co-operative Guild, which for nearly 20 years was organised from The Rectory and played a big part in the foundation and development of the welfare state. And before he retired from the parish, his grandchildren had triggered J.M. Barrie into writing Peter Pan … but nothing of that reaches the School’s log-books! In contrast to the changes, I am also struck by how much stays the same. Schools are dynamic institutions that have to keep functioning through changing circumstances both within and without, but often the same concerns keep reappearing – like transport, school meals and the numbers of pupils in school. It is so interesting that in the earliest days the distance to be walked to school was one reason for hunger, fatigue and absenteeism: so the village schools were established in Lupton, Middleton, Barbon and elsewhere. A hundred years later, these were all deemed too small to be viable, and the School day at St Mary’s became governed by the bus timetable and the availability of car parking. School meals, essential in the days of poverty, are really no less so these days with the need to teach and satisfy standards vii
of good nutrition. And the earliest records show us that concerns about pupil numbers, target-setting and payment by results were not unknown to the Victorians. But most noticeable of all is to read in the establishment of the School in 1856 that “it is to be open alike to all classes and denominations … .” The Governors today regularly review the School’s ethos and aims, and hold fast to this concept that it should be inclusive of all within the community it serves. There are occasions when we fail to live up to this, but this book reminds us how fundamental it is to the well-being of our children. This book is a tribute to the generations of children who have been through the National and St Mary’s School, and to those there now whose enthusiasm lit the fuse for these memories. In addition, there have been many who have contributed their experiences and knowledge, for the editors to weave into what will now be a useful and entertaining historical resource, and one that we are so grateful for the time and hard work that they have put into it. Dr Tim Burnett Chair of Governors
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Map of Kirkby Lonsdale
Part I Kirkby Lonsdale National School: The Early Years 1850s–1890s
1850s
I
n the 1850s England schools came in many shapes and sizes – private schools, grammar schools, and ‘dame’ schools, as well as ‘ragged’ schools for poorer children. Subscription schools could be found where people had raised funds locally to establish a school. National Schools were also founded by the National Society whose main aim was to establish schools in every parish across England to teach ‘the Poor’ and children of the ‘labouring classes’. National Schools aimed to give children a religious education according to the principles of the Church of England and to guide them to be useful members of society. The National Society commonly used the ‘monitorial system’ developed by Dr Andrew Bell, using Pupil Teachers to assist the teachers. Although Kirkby Lonsdale had a school since Queen Elizabeth School was founded in 1591, it was not until 1856 that a subscription school appears in the records, followed soon after by the establishment of a National School in 1858. Millbrow House – original site of Kirkby Lonsdale Subscription School
TIMELINE 1850s
Kirkby Lonsdale Subscription School Part of the Kirkby Lonsdale Workhouse, now Millbrow House on Millbrow, was used as a Subscription School from 1856 to 1858 before the National School opened on Fairbank. This subscription school began on 14th January 1856 and was set up to enable poorer families to send their children to school at an affordable cost. Mr Jonas Gill was Master of the Boys’ School and Miss Kaberry was Mistress of the Girls’ School. She had trained at the Training College in Cheltenham and was a Certificated Teacher, paid £20 per year. Jonas Gill was paid £30 per year. There were also two pupil teachers.
1850 David Copperfield by Charles Dickens published. 1853 Crimean War began. 1854 Charge of the Light Brigade. 1856 Crimean War ended. 1857 The Indian Mutiny. 1857 Tom Brown’s Schooldays by Thomas Hughes published. 1859 Darwin’s Origin of the Species published.
Subscription School 14th January 1856 Committee: Mr R. Picard, Mr R. Roper, Mr Harrison, Mr Metcalfe, Mr Wilkinson, Secretary R. Roper, Treasurer R. S. Picard A School established in Kirkby Lonsdale for the education of Boys and Girls, the Children of poor parents, commenced on the 14th day of January 1856. This school is established with a view to afford to poor people the means of educating their children at an easy cost. The Master of the School is to be a member of the Church of England, but the School is to be open alike to all classes and denominations and neither Master nor children are to be compelled to attend school on Sundays or any particular place of worship … Master selected by the Committee and engaged at a Salary (guaranteed) of £30 per annum, and the children’s pence – Mr Jonas Gill. Each Scholar shall pay 1d per week for tuition and 1d per month for coals.
A PORTRAIT
This fascinating portrait of St Mary’s Church of England Primary School, and its predecessor Kirkby Lonsdale National School, offers a richly illustrated and elegantly produced account of a key aspect of Kirkby Lonsdale life in the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In telling the story of the school itself this book also tells the social history of Kirkby Lonsdale through the decades, exploring the school’s pivotal role in the community, as well as showing how events in the wider world affected school life. Based on original school records and contemporary accounts, the book describes the struggles and successes of the children, their teachers and families. Quotations, short recollections and school log book extracts give a vivid portrayal of school life as it was and as it is today. Fascinating tales of Collop Monday and Oak Bob Day, Spitfires and rosehips, lace-making and abseiling down the church tower, provide a nostalgic feast for all ages to enjoy.
A wonderful, unique record that everyone associated with the school will cherish
Back cover artwork by children from St Mary's Church of England Primary School
£9.99
A PORTRAIT
With illustrations by Jeremy Mayes
Kirkby Lonsdale National School & St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Kirkby Lonsdale National School & St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Glynis Pepperrell Audrey Phillips Jane Sparrow-Niang
Kirkby Lonsdale National School
& St Mary’s
Church of England Primary School A PORT RAIT