by Richard Bryant, Lindfield History Project Group

This month’s article reflects the memories of pupils attending this school in the wartime 1940s and following decades. Interestingly, many similar aspects of school life were remembered, but details varied with attendance years. The school had two air raid shelters: a boys’ shelter and a separate one for the girls, built in the playground. The entrances were about three feet apart, opposite each other, and were disliked by children and teachers alike. From the middle of the war they were not normally used during air raid warnings, although practices continued. Shelter was taken under desks when a flying bomb was imminent. Each Monday morning, the teachers sold National Savings stamps to support the war effort, collected dinner money and administered doses of cod liver oil. Life across Britain started to return to normal with the arrival of the 1950s. One cherished memory from 1951 was a school trip by senior girls to London for the Festival of Britain, a showcase of modernity and a bright future, with the futuristic Skylon Tower and Dome of Discovery exhibition. The Festival was in stark contrast to life in rural Lindfield and its Victorian school buildings with their high windows and wooden floors; one classroom still retained tiered desking.

Assembly started each day with classical music playing while children filed in and out, and, of course, the hymn singing. Some of the hymns were written on huge sheets of paper hung at the front. Jerusalem was among the most popular. Another ritual was morning milk with an individual small bottle for each child. It was not unusual on very cold days for the top of the milk to be frozen, and if stood for too long in front of a radiator it became tepid and unpleasant. One feature universally and adversely recalled across the decades were the outside toilets, described as dark and freezing during the winter months. Maintenance was sometimes poor and several girls mention having to put a foot under the door for a friend as often the locks were broken. The boy’s facilities were equally unpleasant.

Another feature remembered with a shudder from the late 1960s onwards was the outdoor swimming pool, donated by the Parent Teacher Association. The shallow water was extremely cold and the bottom very slippery. Having to step into a horribly dirty footbath before climbing the ladder to get into the “ice bath” was also well-remembered. Perhaps a thought should have been spared for the 1930s pupils who walked to the Ouse for their swimming practice! In the years prior to the school having its own pool, selected senior pupils were taken to the Birch Hotel for swimming lessons. This was regarded as a real treat, their names having been ‘drawn out of a hat’. School dinners are much remembered; while some are good memories, others are less favourable. From 1948, lunch was taken in the then new canteen in the girls’ playground. Children queued at a hatch for food, to be eaten seated at long tables with benches. The lunches were widely regarded as lovely and the dinner ladies held in special affection. Favourite dishes included spam and baked bean pie, banana custard, crumble, gypsy tart (evaporated milk, sugar and pastry), rice pudding with jam and Sussex Pond pudding. Less popular were semolina, chocolate sponge with chocolate custard, tapioca and, served in the 1950s, reconstituted peas and butter beans. There was always fish on Fridays. In the early 1970s, if sprouts weren’t eaten, rubbish had to be picked up from the playground. Prior to comprehensive schools progression to secondary education was selective, requiring sitting the dreaded 11 plus examinations, held in the Social Centre (aka Reading Room) and sternly invigilated by the vicar and school governors. Equally nerve-wracking was results day: the headmaster read out the names of those who had passed to attend grammar school, with each name being greeted with clapping and cheers. Becoming a grammar school pupil was a proud achievement. Originally there were three playgrounds, mixed infants, boys and girls. It was many years before segregation in the playground ended. All the usual childhood games were played, including kick-about football, hopscotch, skipping and ‘conkers’ in autumn. There was also a netball court and, in earlier years dancing around the maypole. In summer, breaks could be spent playing on the Common, much fun being had in the new mown long grass. The Common was also used for football, cricket, stoolball, running and sometimes gym, as well as the obligatory annual sport day. Teams have always proudly represented the school in district schools competitions and leagues, with admirable results being achieved.

The curriculum included gardening classes teaching the basics - sowing, planting and tending plants - and pupils were allowed to stay after school to spend extra time with their plants. There were the ever-popular after-school clubs; the perennial choir and, in the 1950s, the much-enjoyed country dancing on a Friday afternoon. Another stalwart, proudly watched by parents, were the school plays. Over the years a wide range have been performed from Ali Baba in 1957 to the Nativity plays, at King Edward Hall or the Social Club building, latterly part of the school. Throughout the decades, major village events and royal celebrations have been supported with singing, dancing and gym displays; perhaps most notable were the Coronation Pageant in 1953 and everyone dressing up for the school centenary.

During the 20th century’s less enlightened years some teaching methods and punishment harked back to Dickensian times. The school cane hung prominently in the headmaster’s office as a visual deterrent against misbehaviour. Teachers applied their ruler for a purpose other than measuring and drawing straight lines. In the infant classes, any child that had the temerity to attempt to write with their left hand had a wooden ruler come down with some force on the back of the hand. Misbehaving children would be stood on their chair and smacked on the back of the legs with the ruler. One female teacher in the early 1960s, it is recalled, had her own unbelievable punishment for misbehaviour. The miscreant received her ‘black hole punishment’ and was shut in a small confined black space. What would Ofsted have said?! Everyone remembered their headteacher and teachers, many as caring, kind, lovely and very sweet and a few disliked, being described as nasty, scary, fearsome and horrid. Nevertheless, overall the school was warmly acclaimed with good memories, perhaps best summed up in the phrases ‘fortunate to have attended such a lovely school’ and ‘gave me a good start in life’. One could ask no more from a school. No reminisces would be complete without mention of the old school bell. With thanks to Lindfield Memories Facebook group, Lindfield Life readers and all contributors.

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