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MR. CALLOW - EARLY DAYS AT SPRING GROVE
When I was appointed, in September 1924 the school was small, and had less than two hundred pupils. Only the first two floors were used, the top floor being used by a day continuation school, under the control of Mr. Handovor. This school was the last of its kind and closed in December 1924. The following term Mr. Handover joined the Spring Grove staff.
Many of the forms were small, and thirty represented the maximum. There was only one form II, no form I and no form VI. The senior pupils, those in form V, were fourteen plus and, therefore, the prefects were much younger than today. Pupils came from a very -much wider area than at present, some coming from Putney, Ealing and westwards beyond Harlington.
There were four houses, named Robins, Seagulls, Swallows, amd Skylarks. 'Mr. Cross was in charge of the Skylarks, Mr. Fondick of the Swallows, Mr Snaith (then senior master) in charge of Seagulls, and I was in cargo of the Robins. Pupils who failed persistently to conform to the school rules, were removed to a Cuckoo house.
When I arrived, the Chemistry Laboratory was brand new as also was the hall. I can still remember the wood shavings on the laboratory floor, when I first started to teach chemistry there. I also taught geography throughout the school and also some mathematics with several periods of games to fill up my time-table.
The number of staff was small - the headmaster was Mr. C.A. Wood, Mr. Snaith (Physics, Maths), Miss Blair Smith (French), Miss Edith Taylor (English), Miss Casselden (Botany) Mr. Fendick (History) and Mr. Cross (Woodwork and P.T. ). Visiting staff included Miss Quelch (Art), Miss Cook (Needle-work), Miss Jones (Girls' P.T.) and Miss Bonnett (Music).
Hours were from 9 to 12 and 2 to 4. Only a handful of pupils stayed to lunch, which was served by the caretaker and his wife and eaten, in the basement, in silence.
The Summer term of 1925 was warm and Sunny, and in some ways, seems to be the happiest of my early terms at Spring Grove. There were no external exams to worry about, and so far internal school exams, academic work proceeded at a leisurely pace. House tea parties were quite easy to arrange when there were only about 50 pupils to each house.
The Headmaster at the time was very keen on keeping the grounds in good order. Each pupil had a small plot, and Mr. Cross, the woodwork master more often than not, was out in the grounds supervising the pupils - so much so, in fact, that his complexion suggested that he had only just returned from the South Seas.
My form, in those days was VB - a prize collection of doubtful academic ability, but easy to get along with. We inhabited Room 2 (later the Commercial Room), and my staff room, conveniently was next door, in what later became Mr. Tomlinson's (of the Polytechnic) office. There was nothing of any great value in our staff room, yet in September, 1924 we were burgled and Mr Cross lost his P.T. kit, as a result (though in fairness to the still undetected criminals it should perhaps be .added that they did leave behind a few soiled garments in exchange)
Not only keen on keeping the grounds neat and tidy, the Headmaster intent on keeping his staff trim and physically fit. In the summer term, of 1925, we all turned out to play tennis, and the grass courts, whilst never up to Wimbledon standards by the end of July, showed more than a superficial resemblance to the Sahara. The male staff were expected also to play cricket and I became a. vital member of the staff team.
While in those days, ay efforts to brighten the game were very determined, they were not, unfortunately, very long-lived - not longer than a few overs, and on one occasion, at least, not surviving the first ball.
We had, in those days, a part time music teacher, and so it fell to my lotto play the piano morning assembly. The Headmaster required music for pupils to march into and out of the hall; and Percy Grainger's "Country Gardens" was a special favorite. Morning Assembly frequently went on so long that first lesson was cancelled. and so also did the staff meetings
The caretaker, Mr. Stowe, was as so often happens, "a character", and always ready with advice on the running of the school; he invariably wore a straw hat with his official overalls, whatever the weather. There was also a groundsman, who had to look after the "school horse", which was used for pulling the rollers and the mower. When the groundsman retired, the horse disappeared also.
The original stabling or coach houses, with a little alteration, became the physics laboratory and gymnasium and the coach yard betwean them, when roofed over, became the School Hall, which was officially opened at the first Speech Day in December 1924, by Sir Joynston Hicks (later Lord Brentford), then Home Secretary and M.P. for Brentford.
Many changes took place in the considerable period that I spent at Spring Grove - The Great West Road was in process of construction and large areas South of the Southern Region railway-line, and West of Thornbury Road were still market gardens when I first came. There was no fire station or cinema, and Harvard Road was just a rough track and houses in The Grove were just being built.
It would be nice to go back and relive those 38 years again, but as this is impossible, the next best thing is an armchair before a blazing fire and an invitation to reminisce. My good wishes to the Association and many thanks for this opportunity to recall "the good old days"
R. L. Callow. St. Peter's. 31 Elphinstone Rd, St. Leonard's, Hastings, SUSSEX. |