HALLOW SCHOOL
Grade: II Listing NGR: SO8259358647
1857 by William Jeffrey Hopkins; mid-C20 alterations and additions.
Brick, blue brick surface ornamentation, stone dressings, tiled roofs with
parapets and kneelers at gable ends. High Victorian Gothic style. Asymmetrical composition of large main
schoolroom range, to east of which is a smaller, parallel range with a large
bell tower and adjacent small south cross-wing. Single storey and attic; blue
brick bands and also blue diaper frieze at mid-wall height and below eaves level;
corner buttresses with offsets; large, multi-light traceried windows in gable
ends. Main elevation to east: range to right of bell tower has a 4-light and a
3-light flat headed window separated by an early C20 gabled porch with pointed
doorway and trefoil open-ing above; at junction of porch roof ridge and main
roof is a brick chimney with offsets. The south cross-wing gable end has a
3-light window and circular opening above pierced with quatrefoil. Bell tower
of 3 stages; lower stage has buttresses with offsets, pointed doorway and hood
mould with returns continuing as string, broad, round-lobed, part-glazed
quatrefoil frieze above; second stage has 3 narrow lights; third stage has
clockface recessed within moulded circular surround; 3 part-louvred, part-traceried
openings to each face of bell turret, tall pyramidal roof with fishscale tiles,
and weathercock. The school was founded in 1712 by Bishop Lloyd, with part of
the money left by Anne Bull, a local benefactress, died 1707, to purchase land
to provide the endowment for schools in Hallow, Grimley and Madresfield. The
school had fallen into decay by the early C19 and the present school was built
with money from the rent from Anne Bull's lands.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hallow
School in the 18th and 19th centuries
In
1707 Anna Bull of Hallow Park died, leaving £100 in her will to buy 3 pieces of
land (20 acres) in Hallow which were to be rented out and the monies used to
establish a free school for boys and girls in the Village of Hallow. Boys
should learn to read, write, do accounts and learn and recite the Church
Catechism. Girls should also learn to read, write, do simple accounts, cook and
sew. This was at a time when few children, particularly girls, had the chance
to attend school.
The
school was instituted in 1712 by the Bishop of Worcester, William Lloyd. A
group of Trustees (Governors) were chosen to establish the school along Anna
Bull's guidelines, on the site of the existing school. Hallow School consisted
of a building to be used as a schoolhouse, garden and outbuildings in an acre
and a half of land.
In
1747 John Doharty 'survey'd and map'd’ the village of Hallow and included a
drawing of the new school on the beautiful map commissioned by the Bishop of
Worcester. A reproduction of the map is displayed in the Parish Hall.
Most
children who joined the school were from families who farmed the land in and
around the village. Children would also have worked on the farms at busy times
in the year, such as harvest time, and would then have missed their lessons.
Hallow
school was already 88 years old at the start of the 19th Century. The original
building had 'fallen into decay' by 1829 so two 'large commodious schoolrooms'
were built. The original building was repaired for use as a schoolhouse. A Mr.
Best was the Headmaster at that time.
By
1852 the school was commended for its 'good English education' and numbers had
increased to 127 so the 71 boys were taught in the disused Baptist chapel and
the 56 girls upstairs in the school house. Mr. Bullock was the Headmaster and
his wife the schoolmistress. In 1884 the school was again enlarged, made possible by a large donation from Mr. Charles Wheeley Lea, of Parkfield, Hallow, enabling the unusual clock turret and tower also to be built at a total cost of £687.
In 1888 the school became a 'National
School' teaching some pupils until they left school to go to work at the age of
15. Mr. William Wilding was Headmaster
in the late 19th century. School holidays were given to allow children to help
with the harvest. They had a pea and bean holiday in late June and a hop
picking holiday at the end of August and into September. These holidays periods
continued until well into the 20th Century.
Hallow School from the 20th Century
onwards
In 1903 Mr. Arthur
Robinson Moreton became headmaster of Hallow School, succeeded by Mr. Alfred
Spencer Lewis in 1923. In 1911 the Infant School was opened then combined with
the upper school in 1923.
Arthur Robinson Moreton 1860 - 1933
 |
| School group, 1926 |
Funded by local subscription, the Parish Hall was opened in 1930 and Mr.
Joseph Banks gave the Playing Field to the village.
Older girls, up to
14 years learnt cookery, laundry, sewing, and boys learnt woodwork, handicraft,
poultry keeping and gardening.
 |
| Physical education, 1939 |
In 1939 eleven evacuees and
their teacher joined the school from Birmingham. Children were surveyed for
malnutrition in 1940. Mr. Maurice Jones became headmaster to Hallow School, and
in 1945 schools meals started in the Parish Hall.
In 1947 a Dr. Barnardos Home
was opened in Hallow Park. The children attending Hallow School for their
education added 5 or 6 children per class. The May Day Patronal Festival was
revived in 1951 by the wife of Mr. Reynolds, the vicar of Hallow and has been
held every May ever since.
Government changed
the Law in 1952 to bring school holidays in rural schools into line with city
schools meaning the loss of income to families from the children working in the
hop fields.
In 1960 educational provision for older children changed so that they left
Hallow School at the age of 11years to go on to The Chantry High School or the
Grammar Schools and Hallow became a Primary School.
 |
| The Woodwork class |
In 1963 Leslie Boulton became headmaster with
Lionel Graves taking over this role from 1968 to 1986.
GRAVES, Lionel (4 May 1926 to 5 November 2017)
Lionel was appointed headmaster of Hallow Primary School in 1968, a position he held for 18 years until his retirement in 1986 at the age of 60. He was born in Glasgow to his Scottish mother Chrissie with whom he soon travelled to Africa to join his father, who worked as Postmaster in Kenya. To read more about his life click here.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HALLOW VOLUNTARY SCHOOL IN WORLD WAR I
(Information gathered from the school log book, and articles from Parish Magazines).
To read this item, please click here
