Were you at Berridge?


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We took quite a lot between us so will post a few.

 

Also had an early wander round the old streets. Bobbers Mill Road, where I was born. Oakland Street, Berridge Road, Brushfield Street, across Alfreton Road and up Radford Boulevard, Wordsworth Road, Prospect Street, Churchfield Lane and a wander round the exterior of St Peter's Old Radford where my parents were married 70 years ago this June.

 

Both change and familiarity but I was dismayed by the apparent habit of dumping rubbish, especially furniture, outside houses, parking all over the pavements and, generally, the tattiness of everything!  Spoilt my memories.

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Through this door...and it's the original, although painted black in my day...I walked with my mum one cold morning early in 1962. I was just 4 years old. The door led to Miss Smith's office and my mu

How many Berridge children have secreted themselves inside this niche situated in the playground which fronts the old infant building, hoping to be left behind when the bell rang at playtime's close?

Sitting on this exact spot, facing the stationery cupboard in Mr Parr's classroom, in spring 1969, I sat my 11+ exam.

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Approaching Berridge from Oakland Street. The old iron railings have been replaced by modern mesh. The school has recently been re-roofed which gave staff the opportunity to venture into the roofspace which is extensive. Berridge was built in 1884.

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The Brushfield Street entrance gate and, beyond it, the door to what was my first classroom.  The room is now the kitchens and the gate a replacement for the original.  As I stood here yesterday, I remembered the feeling of dread as I crossed that threshold every morning with my break time biscuits, wrapped in paper, clutched in my hand.  My mother stood at this gate every lunchtime and home time to collect me. Very powerful memories. She passed through this gate herself from 1930, with the same sense of dread, whilst her own mother collected her at lunchtime and home time.

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Looking down from the first floor onto the wall that separates the old infant playground from the juniors. The brick piers of the old gate in the wall can be made out. That gate and the steps leading to it were removed in 1968 and the ramp installed. I was surprised to find it is still there.

 

 

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This is the classroom where I spent my final year at Berridge. Our teacher was Mr Trevor Williams.  In 1968, every classroom had a walk-in stationery cupboard built. All are still there. This one is on the left.

 

We all agreed that there is much more wall display today, all over the school. Personally, I felt it was way over the top. Not a tiny space that wasn't adorned with bright colours and information. Even the classroom doors!  I found it confusing and overwhelmingly 'loud' but perhaps today's children thrive on it.

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One good thing was discovering that the outside toilets had been removed. I've written about my very distressing experience at the age of 4 years in the self-flushing toilets in the corner of the infant playground. The playground is now a car park but, in the corner where the loos once stood, I found evidence of their previous existence in these glazed tiles!

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Interesting comments on your photos, Jill.  I'm pleased you were able to revisit your old school.  One thing that stood out for me was when you said about your mother going to the same school having the same sense of dread as you did.   I wonder if she passed this fear on to you...... maybe not directly, but subliminally.   Just a thought.....

It's very easy to pass  our own feelings on to our children - both positive and negative.   I remember deliberately overcoming my distaste of worms by digging in the garden with my children, picking worms up and putting them on the other side of the garden .... we pretended they were going on their holidays!   I'm still not over fond of them (worms, not the children!) but they (the children not the worms) don't share my feelings.

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9 minutes ago, MargieH said:

wonder if she passed this fear on to you...... maybe not directly, but subliminally.   Just a thought.....

I doubt it, Margie. Not until many years later did she tell me about it and she always tried to make school a positive experience.

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I am sat here at the keyboard just wondering where to begin. There was so much to take in and I am still pondering, with a touch of emotion, about 'my' Berridge of the 40's and 50's and the Berridge of today. I was there as a senior boy 11-15 y/o and it is now a junior mixed school. This made classroom comparisons a bit difficult and I had to hark back to when I was at the Windley school as a junior 1945/8. As far as the building is concerned it is still the same classic building. 135 years old and with it's new roof looks good enough for another 135 years. The wooden class rooms have gone and these held my best memories of the school and were where my favourite subjects were held - science (Mr 'Buffalo' Cheeseman), maths (Mr Jewitt) and woodwork (Mr Kendrick). Also gone is the tuck shop on the corner of Oakland St that was just across from the woodwork class room. More postings to come.

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The place and School are not places from my memory bank at all, as I never visited the area,  but thank you Jill and PP for sharing. It's surprising how when people can talk about memories with so much enthusiasm it can spark off interest for the others as your posts have done for me. I love your pictures and descriptions.

 

I would be thrilled if I could have the opportunity to do as you have, and visit All Hallows School Gedling once more. Every corner and room will evoke a memory for me as I'm sure it would for other  past pupils.

 

Have you any more pictures and stories for us.

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The only memory resurrected for me, was from Jill's third picture. I remember playing with cigarette packets leaning against the wall, and us boys flicking other flattened packets in order to knock them down. The one that knocked down most, won  !  Brilliant.

 

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I never knew the place, but one of Jill's photos reminded me of something I'd posted previously, showing an aerial view of the school in the 1930s. I recognised the playground dividing wall and surrounding bits.

BTwpPkw.jpg

 

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I've said this before. Although the raison d'etre for the site is nostalgia it long ago morphed into something more. There is room for all subjects and topics if posted in moderation

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Broadly correct, there has always been room for most subjects, 'Owt about Nowt' has been there since the site's inception. This has gradually branched out into many different topics.

 

There is room for all topics and subjects and if there is any moderation to be done, there is a person to do that called a Moderator.

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20 minutes ago, TBI said:

there is a person to do that called a Moderator.

Do we really need nanny constantly watching over us? Can we not use our common sense and exercise a little restraint?

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No, you're absolutely correct, we shouldn't need a nanny.

 

Any member should be free to post what they wish within the topics, without interference from a group who believe different.

 

You made a point the other day about letting sleeping dogs lie, remember?

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Jill, your posts stirred a distant memory for me. I can vaguely remember that as a tiddler at Douglas road school, we made our own hand puppets. Can't recall the show we did but I do remember taking our show to Berridge school and my part with my puppet was as a blind man.

All I remember was most of my part required a lot of coughing, not easy when your only about 9 or 10. Still, we got refreshments and biscuits.

We, as the cast felt like the bees knees. Done bugger all since....

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Ah I'm afraid common sense is not all that common these days Brew, we had that right took off us by the nanny state,(those who know best)

 

Rog

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P-20190326-092806.jpg

 

 

This is the former tuckshop to which PP is referring, on the corner of Oakland Street and Berridge Road.

 

In my day, it was run by Mr and Mrs Merriman. They were probably in their 50s. They sold general grocery items but also sweets and ices. Penny drinks were a favourite or 3d drinks if you were feeling flush.

 

Lovely people the Merrimans. They emigrated to Australia where their son was already living. Someone else bought the shop but it was never the same. It closed long ago. The windows and doors now bricked up.

 

Who ran it in your day, PP?

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You may be right about conveying subconscious fear, Jill.  Although I know what causes them I've always hated (feared them I guess)  Maybe that's where Jake gets his fear of them.  He senses it in me.  As  a kid I hated to be alone in the house in thunderstorms.  Maybe I got it from seeing too many scary movies where nasty things happen to folks in big old houses during storms.

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Lovely visit to Berridge yesterday and nice to put faces to names. Planning a few things I could talk to the children about and sort out my school photos it made me realise that it was 59 years since I first stepped through that gate. I can hardly believe it. Happy days at Berridge in comparison to the school that followed, Forest Fields Grammar that I grew to loath. Not entirely the schools fault, I will shoulder some of the responsibility but safe to say I hated it.

Don't get me wrong, as for Berridge I was glad when it was weekends and holidays but looked forward to school immensely. The fabric of the building was very familiar. Nice to meet you Terry, Mark, Jane and Jill. Terry's chopping board he made in woodwork class at the school from the centre cut out of a toilet seat went down well with the children.

I had a sister 4 years older and when I was at infant school she at the juniors, she would look out the cloakroom window and wave to me for a bit of moral support for the new boy. Looking up at the window from the spot I used to stand to the window she waved from was very emotional as she passed away almost 4 years ago.

Thanks to Jill for organising.

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