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Burngreave Council School


dunsbyowl1867

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

Officially opened on 26th February 1931 - anyone locate that or have any memories?

I spent the last 18 months of my school life at Burngreave, and will post some memories in due course.

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

I spent the last 18 months of my school life at Burngreave, and will post some memories in due course.

Here's a pix of old Scowcroft, the headmaster in the early 1950s. Rather sour, no sense of humour, and told me I would never make anything --a waste of time my dreaming of becoming a journalist!

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Here's a pix of old Scowcroft, the headmaster in the early 1950s. Rather sour, no sense of humour, and told me I would never make anything --a waste of time my dreaming of becoming a journalist!

Hi,

I remember 'Stalag Burngreave' only too well, having been held there from Sept. 1948 to Dec. 1951.

I also remember the 'Commandant' who's picture you attached. (Why did you have post this picture? I was just about to sit down and eat when I saw it)

He also told me that I would never make anything, be a perpetual drain on the social services, etc. That I should abandon any ideas about an apprentice ship or - heaven forbid - becoming a Charted Engineer.

Yes I do have some recollections of the place and will collect my thoughts for later

Regards

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Hi,

I remember 'Stalag Burngreave' only too well, having been held there from Sept. 1948 to Dec. 1951.

Yes I do have some recollections of the place and will collect my thoughts for later

The school was built into a hill side so it was two-stories on the side facing the Don Valley but only single story on the side nearest Burgreave Cemetery. (there was a public foot path between the school and the cemetery) Another thing to remember is that was was two schools in its earlier years. Boys on the left (on the photo), girls on the right. Therefore it was heavily segregated.... and I mean segregated.

This segregation didn't stop certain individuals from both side of "The Wire" from meeting in the cemetery after school for, so it was claimed, Close Encounters of the First Kind. Remember, in those days the school leaving age was 15.

The rooms on the lower level (facing the valley) were for special subjects like science, woodwork, domestic science (girls only) etc. There were no language subjects apart from English and even that was taught sparingly. All though the allotments below the school were supposed to have been cleared by 1940 to provided for sports fields, these didn't arrived until many decades later. For sports on grass, we were transported by tram to Crowder House at Firth Park.

The 'Secondary Modern' concept was a product of the Education Act of 1944 (Whitehall at its most creative) and therfore intended to "Incarcerate rather than Educate". But it wasn't all bad. Most of the teachers saw 'Secondary Modern' as badly flawed and tried to make up for its deficencies. Many teachers were ex servicemen who brought a different perspective to the whole thing.

Regards

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

The school was built into a hill side so it was two-stories on the side facing the Don Valley but only single story on the side nearest Burgreave Cemetery. (there was a public foot path between the school and the cemetery) Another thing to remember is that was was two schools in its earlier years. Boys on the left (on the photo), girls on the right. Therefore it was heavily segregated.... and I mean segregated.

This segregation didn't stop certain individuals from both side of "The Wire" from meeting in the cemetery after school for, so it was claimed, Close Encounters of the First Kind. Remember, in those days the school leaving age was 15.

The rooms on the lower level (facing the valley) were for special subjects like science, woodwork, domestic science (girls only) etc. There were no language subjects apart from English and even that was taught sparingly. All though the allotments below the school were supposed to have been cleared by 1940 to provided for sports fields, these didn't arrived until many decades later. For sports on grass, we were transported by tram to Crowder House at Firth Park.

The 'Secondary Modern' concept was a product of the Education Act of 1944 (Whitehall at its most creative) and therfore intended to "Incarcerate rather than Educate". But it wasn't all bad. Most of the teachers saw 'Secondary Modern' as badly flawed and tried to make up for its deficencies. Many teachers were ex servicemen who brought a different perspective to the whole thing.

Regards

Remember Jasper Holdsworth, the teacher in 4A? I thought he was one of the best teachers I ever had. At least he treated you like a grown up, and he was just good at what he taught. We did a lot of general interest lessons in our final year, discussing current stories that were in the news --I think there the Lynmouth floods occurred that year, for instance. In the previous year, I had been in Guyler's class. He was a strange chap --always seemed to walk into the classroom with a permanent grin on his face, but the minute you tried to have a joke he tended to suddenly lose his sense of humour. Then, of course, there was a guy called Thomas. I was never in his class, but sports days were a nightmare, trying to avoid Thomas, who was always after you for rugby when most of us much preferred a civilised game called football.

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Guest Falls

Remember Jasper Holdsworth, the teacher in 4A? I thought he was one of the best teachers I ever had. At least he treated you like a grown up, and he was just good at what he taught. We did a lot of general interest lessons in our final year, discussing current stories that were in the news --I think there the Lynmouth floods occurred that year, for instance. In the previous year, I had been in Guyler's class. He was a strange chap --always seemed to walk into the classroom with a permanent grin on his face, but the minute you tried to have a joke he tended to suddenly lose his sense of humour. Then, of course, there was a guy called Thomas. I was never in his class, but sports days were a nightmare, trying to avoid Thomas, who was always after you for rugby when most of us much preferred a civilised game called football.

Yes, I remember Mr Holdsworth but never knew his first name was Jasper. He was my 4A teacher (Does Room 52 sound familiar) for the last few months I was there. I was taking night school as well in those last few months and this, together with some proding from Mr. H, sent me to the top of the school in the end-of-year exams.

Of course if you came out top at that time, you were paraded in front of the whole school and congratulated by the "Commandant". He forced himself to shake hands with me but his complexion was a delicate shade of "Puce'.

The recollection of Mr. H uppermost in my mind was the trip he organized in May 1951. This was a four day excursion to London and the Festival of Britain, by bus. The things he included in that trip and the places we were able to see are impossible to repeat these days. And he did it all, including the buses, for five pounds each. Really amazing.

Regards

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

Yes, I remember Mr Holdsworth but never knew his first name was Jasper. He was my 4A teacher (Does Room 52 sound familiar) for the last few months I was there. I was taking night school as well in those last few months and this, together with some proding from Mr. H, sent me to the top of the school in the end-of-year exams.

Of course if you came out top at that time, you were paraded in front of the whole school and congratulated by the "Commandant". He forced himself to shake hands with me but his complexion was a delicate shade of "Puce'.

The recollection of Mr. H uppermost in my mind was the trip he organized in May 1951. This was a four day excursion to London and the Festival of Britain, by bus. The things he included in that trip and the places we were able to see are impossible to repeat these days. And he did it all, including the buses, for five pounds each. Really amazing.

Regards

When I moved from Newhall to Burngreave, Scowcroft put me in 3B (Guyler's class) and refused to listen to my protestations that I had always been in an A grade at my previous schools. A few months later, after I had finished top of 3B, like you I was paraded (along with all the other 'tops') on the stage at assembly. I can't remember Scowcroft shaking my hand, but I do recall that, having proved the point I had made when I arrived at the school (and still feeling a certain anger), I couldn't resist putting my hands above my head when my name was announced and expressing my delight in the style of a boxing champion! Scowcroft gave me one of his "frozen" looks, and, when we got back to the classroom (it was on the ground floor, right at the end of a long corridor), Guyler made it plain that he had not been impressed by my celebration. It tried to say that I was not showing off, but simply making a point to Scowcroft. During the following year, Holdsworth was good enough to say on a couple of occasions that he couldn't believe I had just come up from a B stream.

I think the only fault I found with Holdsworth (initials JAH) was that he kept lads at a distance (you couldn't have much of a private conversation, and, if you had a problem, you felt he didn't want to know), and so, when I met up with him some years later, he had no memory of having ever known me at school.

I once (a couple of years or so after leaving school) saw Guyler in town with his wife, and he looked very henpecked. He didn't speak, but he obviously recognised and remembered me (though he probably wished I hadn't recognised him)!

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Guest Falls

When I moved from Newhall to Burngreave, Scowcroft put me in 3B (Guyler's class) and refused to listen to my protestations that I had always been in an A grade at my previous schools. A few months later, after I had finished top of 3B, like you I was paraded (along with all the other 'tops') on the stage at assembly. I can't remember Scowcroft shaking my hand, but I do recall that, having proved the point I had made when I arrived at the school (and still feeling a certain anger), I couldn't resist putting my hands above my head when my name was announced and expressing my delight in the style of a boxing champion! Scowcroft gave me one of his "frozen" looks, and, when we got back to the classroom (it was on the ground floor, right at the end of a long corridor), Guyler made it plain that he had not been impressed by my celebration. It tried to say that I was not showing off, but simply making a point to Scowcroft. During the following year, Holdsworth was good enough to say on a couple of occasions that he couldn't believe I had just come up from a B stream.

I think the only fault I found with Holdsworth (initials JAH) was that he kept lads at a distance (you couldn't have much of a private conversation, and, if you had a problem, you felt he didn't want to know), and so, when I met up with him some years later, he had no memory of having ever known me at school.

I once (a couple of years or so after leaving school) saw Guyler in town with his wife, and he looked very henpecked. He didn't speak, but he obviously recognised and remembered me (though he probably wished I hadn't recognised him)!

Hi.

I, remember that class room on the lower level (right below Room 52). What a dark miserable place. I was in there for a year with Mr. Snell (for 3A).

I found all my teachers distant; however, JAH did seem more approachable on the London trip, being 'Out of Uniform', so to speak. His wife and daughter were also there so it was a more relax atmosphere anyway.

Regards

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

Hi.

I, remember that class room on the lower level (right below Room 52). What a dark miserable place. I was in there for a year with Mr. Snell (for 3A).

I found all my teachers distant; however, JAH did seem more approachable on the London trip, being 'Out of Uniform', so to speak. His wife and daughter were also there so it was a more relax atmosphere anyway.

Regards

Does anyone have any memories of old colleagues at Burngreave? Also, anyone any thoughts on products of Burngreave who went to to beciome really well known?

As an example, in the 1940s Sheffield Wednesday had a full-back pairing of Frank Westlake and Hugh Swift --and Hugh Swift was an ex-Burngreave lad (his framed picture was hung just outside Scowcroft's office).

Then, again, Johnny Fantham (pictured here), Wednesday's record goalscorer, was a Burngreave pupil, and must have left school in 1954.

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Guest harmston

Just found this subject is any one still around I was at BURNGREAVE 47 - 51 teacher , John Holden, I am still in contact with Michael Rose Fox Brothers same years but in Mr Holdsworth class. Other names I can recall, John Turner , Stan Hobson, John Sykes,Eric Kirby Girls side ( do not look or speak to them} Shirley Axe Maureen Hobson

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Here's a pix of old Scowcroft, the headmaster in the early 1950s. Rather sour, no sense of humour, and told me I would never make anything --a waste of time my dreaming of becoming a journalist!

Mr W Scowcroft ( assume its the same one as at Burngreave) was the first Head at Hinde House Sec Mod which I went to as soon as it opened in 1956. I certainly remember him as a fairly sour character.

John

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I attended Burngreave between 1951 and 1955. Apart from Scowcroft whom, I found reasonable but then again I lived at a post office and used to post all his mail for him, there was Holden 1A, Andrews 2A, Guyler part of 3A, the other teacher was nick named Bullet Head with a favourite subject of English Geography. Then Holdsworth 4A room 52. Metal work was Ferniough, Wood work was Holly and Needham. I personally think the school did a fine job of education especially in the final year as they pushed mathematics a little further that they should have but knowing that most of us would be probably becoming apprentices it did help. At the time I didn't have a clue what they were on about but later on as an apprentice electrician it all fell into place. In support for Scowcroft, when I was nearing leaving at 15 I wanted to be a telephone technician but required a knowledge of physics, he told my parents that if I stayed on at school for another year he would personally tutor me. Hey, I was 15 and about to leave school, no way was I staying on for another year. Of course later on I realised what chance he was giving me, although in hindsight I now am glad I took the path I did.

Gordon

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Guest Pickledog

Does any one remember my Dad or Uncle, Charles and Peter Woodbridge, I have some of there old class photo's from thier days at Burngreave, also my Auntie Anne, Patricia Anne Fowler also attended the school arround the same time, this would have been between 1948 and 1955 I would guess. I have a number of class photo's if any one is interested.

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Guest jdaviddenial

I was at Burngreave from 1952 to 1957, missed a bit through asthma, but did not like it, I remember in 52 a lad being sent around each classroom in school with a small chalk board saying "The King is dead"

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Burngreave school is at the top of this arial photo. I was trying to remember why I knew the name Scowcroft as I did not go to Burngreave myself, but one of your letters solved the problem, Hinde House School, he was there when I was.

Vic

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

I spent the last 18 months of my school life at Burngreave, and will post some memories in due course.

Just learned that an old Burngreave schoolfriend, Terry Cain, has died at the age of 75. Terry has been suffering from Alzheimer's for the past few years, and it has been very sad to see him unable to remember friends and family. He was a really good guy, and he was a great pal when we were colleagues almost 60 years ago. He lived in the Birley Street area of Woodside in those days. His funeral is at Grenoside Crem (North Chapel) on Jan 10 2013 at 12.30.

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I went to Burngreave, but after it had re-opened as a Middle School.  All the kids from Ellesmere Road School were moved there, and the Ellesmere Junior became Ellesmere Infants, with the old Infants section becoming a Nursery/Pre School.

Did the last two years of me Primary schooling there, before moving on to Hinde House, of which I will say very little, since I had a very unhappy time there.

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