Grade 2 listed Victorian School

[DaveBrigg]

if we hope to impart a sense of importance about education it needs to look important to students. it needs to uplift and inspire them. Good architecture can help to do that, both for pupils and teachers.

Your comments came back to me a few times last week, and although I have no influence over buildings maintenance, you've inspired me to do something about the depressing environment in which I work. Thanks The frustration comes from spending most of my spare time trying to bring a crumbling listed building up to scratch, and then working in a listed building which is slowly heading in the other direction.

a bit of creativity

That seems to be the key. The new school in Brigg has a 'living roof', and was built in an unused corner of an industrial estate, so no ironies about destroying nature there. It sounds like in your case the reverse was true.
The problem with old schools seems to be paralleled by that of churches. Our local vicar serves six parishes, each of which has an old, listed church in need of repair, and a congregation that varies between 6 and 30. In winter everyone sits through the service wearing coats and gloves. As far as I know, none of the churches has a toilet (one even lacks electricity). Twice a month however, the warm and well lit village hall is packed with worshippers, who also make use of the kitchen facilities, car park and projector. At some point, maintaining the beautiful old stone churches for a congregation in single figures is no longer going to be viable, and the choice will be the completely unsuitable private accommodation or boarding up and slow decay.

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Chardstock is a delightful village - full of wonderful old buildings. The archietypal English Village I suppose. My parents live right next door to the school.

 

[Lime]

On a slightly different tack, when new school buildings are designed the building should incorporate the management of pupils.
Many older public school buildings were built well and specifically for managing a lot of young people but state schools stayed in churchlike buildings right into the 60s +.
What was built well in the 60s?
Anything?

A local state school that has failed and is still failing has had millions of pounds spent on it.
The main building of about 15 years was built to provide a pretty picture and in the process provided bolt holes and hiddy holes for 100s of pupils wishing to avoid the eye of any teacher.
It is like a rabbit warren.
I remember my first impression of walking through the school on a wet day at lunchtime.
(The school is strung out in a long curved line with a corridor running roughly down the middle of it.
Doors leave at the sides to open areas running the length of the school both sides.)
I felt threatened and vulnerable every step I took.
It crossed my mind then that this school is built so as to be difficult to manage.

School buildings work well if designed for management of school children.
Discipline is easier to enforce and, perhaps much more important, children feel safe.
Far too many schools are built for looks and speciality whilst the corridors where pupils often spend most of their time are just an add-on or afterthought.

 

[DaveBrigg]

On a slightly different tack, when new school buildings are designed the building should incorporate the management of pupils.

True. I suppose school buildings are a little unusual in that most of the occupants rise simultaneously several times a day and move to a different part of the building. It's easy to have a situation where 120 pupils come out of four rooms at the end of a corridor and head straight into a hundred coming the other way. Not impossible to manage, but more of an issue for state schools which tend to be larger than their private counterparts. Wide corridors, no stairs and lots of space around the buildings would help, although a more imaginative use of fire exits can also solve the problem.
The shape of the rooms is also important; we have some that are rectangular, with the whiteboard in the middle of the longest wall, so that those sat in the front corners cannot see a thing.

built well in the 60s?
Anything?

Yes

 

[vicky whitworth]

Wiggsfamily, right next door to Chardstock School, eh? They'll have an interest in its future then. I've written to the conservation officer and to SAVE and had very nice letters back from them showing a genuine interest. Chardstock is beautiful but it's so hard to convince people that ill-considered changes to the fabric of the village will change it's architypal English village character for ever.

 

[DaveBrigg]

There is an article about demolishing schools in this week's Private Eye. It mentions the demolition of a school in Bethnal Green and approved demolition of the Friern School in Peckham, a Victorian Board School which is going to make space for - An Academy. Two more in Brent are facing demolition, as well as Leigh Central School in Wigan.
A primary in a village near to us closed last year when pupil numbers dropped below 10, and I think it is now used by the Guide Association. I guess if yours is listed the building will at least be saved from demolition.

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Wiggsfamily, right next door to Chardstock School, eh? They'll have an interest in its future then. I've written to the conservation officer and to SAVE and had very nice letters back from them showing a genuine interest. Chardstock is beautiful but it's so hard to convince people that ill-considered changes to the fabric of the village will change it's architypal English village character for ever.

Yes - they overlook the playground and spend half their life throwing footballs, netballs and errant children back over the wall.

Apparently one plan is to turn the building into a home for boys with learning/behavioural difficulties. At least that might notmean wholesale change to the building to turn it into flats, etc.

 

[Ian Bond]

There is an article about demolishing schools in this week's Private Eye. It mentions the demolition of a school in Bethnal Green and approved demolition of the Friern School in Peckham, a Victorian Board School which is going to make space for - An Academy. Two more in Brent are facing demolition, as well as Leigh Central School in Wigan.
A primary in a village near to us closed last year when pupil numbers dropped below 10, and I think it is now used by the Guide Association. I guess if yours is listed the building will at least be saved from demolition.

Listing seems to give little protection around these parts (just reading about this again in last night's paper)

http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/3544484.Historic_school__being_left_to_rot_/