St Johns Prep School Totley

[John Turner]

A tiny school with a similarly tiny but redoubtable Head Mrs Copley, who single handedly provided the teaching, while husband Harry looked after the school building (a large wooden hut) served up our government issue milk in 1/3 pint bottles, heated up the dinners and took us up Twentywell Lane for football in a field [no line markings or goal posts]. Mrs C was a firm but fair disciplinarian and an excellent teacher of the 'three R's - reading, writing and  'rithmatic'. I went on to Westbourne and my sister Josephine to Sheffield High School.

Does anyone else have any recollections of this school in the 1950's?

John Turner 

[paulhib48]

Hello John 

As an old Totley resident I’m fascinated by your post . I’ve never heard of the existence of this school and would love to know more .

I assume it was connected to St Johns Church on Abbeydale Road South and can only imagine the large wooden hut was where the current church hall is 

The only grassy area up Twentywell Lane I can think of is the triangle of land created by the railway lines which would not be at all ideal for a proper game of football.

[John Turner]

Thanks Paul

St Johns School was situated adjacent to the river between the church and the junction of Twentywell Lane and Abbeydale Road. St Johns Church may well have inspired the name but the school was operated independently by the Copleys. It was indeed a very tiny establishment but I managed to move onto Westbourne School (see attached image of a next door house devastated in the December 1940 Blitz - published in Seniors Smiling Sometimes Seriously John Turner 2021).

The field used by St John's School for football was very rough with a severe slope but as this was in the fifties I imagine the land has long since been utilised for building.

s

[John Turner]

"My memory of Mrs Copley was being caned for putting my peas in a hankie and throwing them in a bin - she said it was for being deceitful not for not eating the peas! Also a wasp settled on my hand and she said it would be my fault if it stung me because I had to keep still. I did keep still, it stung me but I was too frightened to tell her!

I don’t remember any sports other than skipping and hopscotch."

Josephine Turner (submitted via John Turner)

[John Turner]

John, I’ve just remembered the best/worst .She was bending over correcting my work when her false teeth fell out on my page. She just said pick them up dear and popped them back in!

What an education!

Josephine Turner