Swallowcliffe Council School

The National School opened in 1843 and was located south of Rookery Lane near the parish boundary with Ansty; children from Ansty and Wardour parishes were also taught here. By 1858 a master taught up to 70 children and in 1871 the number on the school register was 45. The master and the curate also ran a night school in the 1860s and early 1870s. The master was paid £30 p.a. and expenses were covered by voluntary subscriptions and the payment of fees. The master’s wife taught sewing to the girls in the afternoons. The old site and building remain the property of the church.

A new school was erected and in 1861 had 96 children on the school roll. In 1907 there were 50 pupils and in 1955 there were 34 pupils. The older pupils had gone to school in Salisbury by 1928.

By the early part of the 20th century the attendance varied from 34 to 52 children. By 1973 the school had closed and the local children then attended Tisbury School.

Unfortunately there are no Victorian school log books in Wiltshire & Swindon Archives, but the following general information would be relevant to the school for the latter part of the 19th century. Fees were paid for each child until 1891, normally at the rate of one penny (0.4p) or twopence a week and the ‘school pence’ were collected by the schoolteacher. There would have been a schoolmaster, or schoolmistress, with assistant teachers, pupil teachers and monitors. The pupil teachers were taught by the head before lessons started, took exams, sometimes went to the Diocesan Training College and eventually became teachers themselves. They mainly taught the younger children. Monitors were also paid but tended to be younger and helped to look after the younger children or teach the infants.

School holidays were at similar times to those of today but often there was only 2 days at Easter but a week at Whitsun. The summer holidays were of five or six weeks and were called the Harvest Holidays as the children either helped with the harvest or carried food and drink to their parents, who were working in the fields. There were more half-day and whole day holidays for special events. Half a day would be given after the annual H.M.I. or Diocesan inspections and there were holidays for school treats, choir outings, chapel teas, Christmas parties and at times when the school was needed for other purposes.

There were also many unauthorised absences. These would be for seasonal work, such as haymaking (June) and early or late harvest (July or September), being kept at home to help their parents, and working when they should have been at school. Bad weather such as heavy rain, cold weather, or snow kept children away from school, often because their parents couldn’t afford to buy them suitable clothes. Apart from the usual colds and coughs there were more serious illnesses than today and these included, mumps, measles, whooping cough, scarletina and diphtheria.

The elementary subjects were the ‘3 Rs’ – reading writing and arithmetic. Scripture was often taught by the vicar and children would have attended church for services on some days. Older children were taught history and geography and there may have been some study of natural history. Singing was taught to all ages and all the girls and some of the boys would have done needlework. Drawing had been introduced by the 1890s.

Warburton’s survey of 1859 tells us that the school was built halfway between Swalllowcliffe and Ansty and the main schoolroom measured 30 feet by 18 feet. It had a boarded floor and wall desks and a good supply of books. A competent master taught between 60 and 70 pupils and a few pupils came from Tisbury to attend the school.

While there are no Victorian school log books there is one dating from 1935-1973 and this can provide us with a snapshot of school life prior to and during the Second World War.

The 1935 Scripture Examination of the pupils tells us that their religious knowledge is good but perhaps more emphasis should be placed on teaching the New Testament. In July of that year the senior children were taken to Wardour to complete a map in connection with the Land Utilisation Survey. Senior girls attended domestic science classes away from the school site.

Helen Townson took up her position as Head Teacher in 1934 and remained in post until December 1947; Miss Cross was her assistant teacher and she left in 1938 after being at the school for 13 years. By September 1938 the school needed three teachers, one for the senior children, and one for the juniors and one for the infants; there were 73 children on the school roll and Ansty Hut was used as overspill accommodation. This situation only lasted until 1939. Miss Harfitt assisted until 1943 and travelled in from Salisbury like Mrs. Townson. Miss Williamson took over as Head from 1948 and the last Head of the school up to its closure was Jack Graham.

By 1940 children were winning scholarships to senior schools and in 1944 there were 44 children on the register.

Special holidays were allowed for national events such as the wedding of H.R.H. the Duke of Kent in November 1934 and later for that of the Duke of Gloucester and Lady Alice Scott. In June 1935 the senior children went on a school visit to the King George V docks at Southampton to see the S.S. Majestic and the whole school had a school outing to Weymouth later in the month. Sometimes the school was used as a polling station as on November 14th 1935. Other school trips included visiting the Fry’s chocolate works near Bristol in 1937, followed by a trip to Bristol Zoo and then Bristol Cathedral while also viewing the coronation decorations in the Bristol streets.

Other extra holidays included two half days for the ‘Wings for Victory’ campaign in June 1943 and in May 1945 a two day holiday to celebrate the end of World War II.

Absences occurred for the usual childhood ailments and in 1935 the area suffered a diphtheria and measles epidemic causing the closure of the school. Blizzard conditions also prevented the children from attending in January 1936. By the 1930s the welfare of the children was monitored and they received regular inspections from the dentist, nurse and doctor, receiving treatment when necessary. Four elder girls were absent as they attended an infant’s funeral as bearers at this time.

In 1935 the milk distribution scheme was begun by the Milk Marketing Board and many children took part in the scheme; they were also encouraged to save their pennies under the National Savings Movement. The school was actively fund raising; for a new piano in 1935 and in 1936 for a wireless set. £6 and 10 shillings was raised after a concert was held and the children listened to their first broadcast lesson by the BBC in January 1936. They also listened to the proclamation for King Edward VIII made from Marlborough House in London.

There are mentions of punishments, usually caning, for bad behaviour, impertinence and swearing.

In 1962 the school report by H.M.I. tells us that there were 26 pupils on the school roll; 12 juniors and 14 infants, some coming from Ansty and Sutton Mandeville. The building itself was reached by a flight of steps from the road and the school site adjoined the vicarage with land rising steeply at the back. The large school room measured 540 square feet and the smaller school room measured 200 square feet; this was used for the infants. A scullery is mentioned as well as outside toilets which had hot water and had received some modernisation, but they restricted the playground space so it was hoped to find extra space for physical exercise. Criticism is made of the subjects covered but there is acknowledgement of the difficulties placed upon the teaching staff due to the restrictions of the site and the modest abilities of the children. It was hoped that creative subjects would be encouraged and that the children would be stimulated by additions to their school library.

Swallowcliffe School closed just before Easter in 1973 and children then attended school in Tisbury. A party was held at the end of that term; the children were given the gift of a book each and the staff also received gifts. Thanks were expressed and the acting head at that time, Jack Graham, gave a short speech; his final entry in the school log book finishes with ‘the end of an era.’