BIRTH OF THE NEW SCHOOL BLOCK 1965

BIRTH OF THE NEW SCHOOL BLOCK 1965

Put together by Trev Teasdel

The New School bottom left as of 1966


"Mr Morris wanted new buildings - class rooms, house blocks, dormitories and a new gymnasium." 1957

He intended to build the capacity of the school, with the Director of Coventry Education WL Chinn, in support. His plan was to increase it incrementally to 200 and beyond.

Apart from the two little classrooms and possibly the gym, he didn't get to see his vision fully implemented before his untimely death.

His replacement in 1961, Mr Rowland, wanted buildings too. His proposal was for a 6th form and to also increase the capacity of the school. Mr Rowland had told the press he had had to turn down hundreds of requests for places each year. The Coventry Express in 1963 wrote "There is a new school building programme on the drawing boards."

Again, as we know, Mr Rowland didn't get to see his vision implemented either, before he died. However his agitation for new buildings had worked. Building work started in 1965 under Mr Parker's watch, on the waste land in front of the bursar's hut. As you can be seen the ground level was tricky.

In this photo from 1965 we see a very young Sue Rowland, Rosemary Webb, Sarah Williams and Aileen Parker, with the new building under construction in the background. It's not very clear but you can catch a glimpse behind the wooden hut - the bursar's home.

In spite of Mr Morris and Mr Rowland wanting to increase capacity, I'm not sure there was ever any significant increase in admissions to the school. As far as I know (and I don't have any data to hand) the numbers remained under 200, and I think it was well below that. Correct me if I'm wrong.

MORE NEW BLOCKS PROPOSED

My memory is that this new block was to be the first, and a second, maybe a third, were being planned, utilising the top Rugby field where the Pioneer Centre has subsequently built. Perhaps the Rugby field would have been moved to behind the ablutions - near the air raid shelters. In fact in 1969, there was some footage on the ATV program that showed Mr Thorne taking Rugby in that area. I assume that one of the new buildings would have included a new gymnasium. Because of money restraints or lack of political will, or both, no further buildings transpired.

The full vision of two headmasters never came to fruition. No sixth form, no significant increase in numbers, no new state of the art gymnasium, no development (as far as i know) of the social committee. However, if the full vision wasn't achieved, since 1957 the school had been bought by Coventry LEA; a 5th form for GCE's and later CSE's (they were separate back then); two new class rooms; a change in name and rebranding and the school put on a Secondary school footing.

I don't have headteacher George Parker's vision for the school, although I remember that Aileen Parker told me he had got strong ideas on the school and education in general. Maybe these ideas will come to light.

Photograph Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

Table tennis - Mick Storer, Spud Taylor, Kev Sadler, Andy Ward. The snooker boys - Phil Stevenson, Paul Norman, Roger Mason.

The above photograph of the recreation room in the new block reminds me that the new block opened in the summer term 1966. The lads in the photo were in the 5th form to my 4th form, but they were soon to leave and we to become the new 5th form. The new block accommodated the 4th and 5th years from all houses - leaving the old cedar wood doors to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd years but at least they were able to spread out more.

In the old wooden dorms, the bunk beds were thrown out and replaced with single beds and pupils had more space. The old system was very claustrophobic, with little room for manoeuvre. There were now 4 dormitory blocks for the 3 years to spread out in - This -

Photograph Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

as opposed to that 

BREATH OF FRESH AIR.

The move into the new block was a breath of fresh air. Psychologically it just felt better - we'd come from a city that had a brand new city centre, pedestrian free shopping centre, bright lights and was totally modern. I had grow up on a brand new garden city estate with open spaces and for the first half term of my first year had gone to Binley Park senior school with sharp new buildings. For me personally the cedar wood huts were dark and dull with little or no space to spread out or have any privacy. We made do, but the new block (I think I speak for all), was a huge relief. It was light, modern and spacy with more recreational facilities.

This was Binley Park Secondary school in Coventry and the new school block approximated to this - for me at least.

Let's see some pictures of the new block and then talk about what it encompassed and felt like.

Still from the 1969 ATV documentary on the school

The dormitories were above the classrooms but instead of packing in 30 or 40 boys, they were more like large bed room with 5 boys to each room, all from the same house - eg Mortimer.

An article in the Coventry Telegraph 2010, noting the demolition of this block - then part of the Pioneer Centre and called Forest Lodge - wrote “Forest Lodge, dating from the 1960s had the unusual set-up of bedrooms above and classrooms below, something that would horrify many modern schoolchildren"

Far from being horrified, we loved the new block - it was after all a boarding school and the new dorms were miles better than the old dorms, so we were elated! No problems perceived!

The squashy shiny vinyl floors were a far cry from the old creaky wooden floor boards, only 5 to a room lent to more space and no double bunks - 'luxury'! 

Big windows that opened, more light and better views. There were lockers in the corridor and a bath / shower room. No more running across the drive after shower, in your dressing gown in the freezing cold! Yes it was a luxury b y comparison!

Photograph Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

Downstairs there was a reception room where you changed your muddy footwear with cages for football boots. A communal shower and laundry room and one or two class rooms, a prep room, and recreation room with table tennis, pool tables and doors opened to the outside in the summer, and a reading room (as the above photo shows0. At the far end, near the school gates ,were the quarters of at least 4 members of staff. In my time they were Mr Thorne, The Rev David Williams, Mr Plaice and his wife, and I think Mr Harper.

In the recreation room in 1967 and in 1970 there were school dances with girls from the school in Cleobury Mortimer - something proposed by Mr Rowland in 1963. This is the 1970 dance. I was at the 1967 one just before our year left.

Still from 1969 ATV programme

Mr Parker in the 1969 ATV film - his office moved behind where he was standing.

Still from 1969 ATV programme.

Lockers in the corridors upstairs and the door to the washbasins to wake your self up in the morning! You can see the shiny vinyl floor and entrance to the bedrooms. 

Photograph by Stephen Tearse.

One of the beds in the bed room - this one was Stephen Tearse's - one of the popular and nice guys with academic promise who sadly never it beyond 17 owing to a moped accident on the way to work after leaving school. We remember him fondly.

And here he is in the reading room.

Still from ATV 1969 documentary

Lads, in the 70's sitting outside the recreation room.

From Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

Charles Joyce and Ian Wooldridge playing conquers outside the new block autumn 1966. Photo from Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

Ralph Aldhous, Dean Revell, Frankie Dutton and Peter Wan sitting on a pile of bricks - as you do -c 1967. I remember I was part of the crowd and we had Kodak cameras - no idea what happened to my photos, but we experimented with trick photography - I tried to line Peter Wan up so that I could get Tony Booton's tractor on his head - photographically! Such fun but it made photography more interesting and sharpened your eye for a photograph. Charles Joyce took this photograph.

Dean Revell, Stephen Tearse, Ralph Aldhous and Chris Packham outside the recreation room on a sunny day in 1967. Whiter Shade of Pale was out about then and the Beatles All You Need is Love - Summer of love time.

Frank Dutton, Peter Wan and Stephen Tearse c 1966 Charles Joyce photo.

1969 in the reading room. Still from ATV 1969 documentary.

Photo from Coventry Evening Telegraph 1966

Moving to the other part of the new block, the stem if the shape of the new block is a T shape, there was a new and spacious library. The library was originally in the cedar wood block near the swimming pool and elsewhere before and in my time was run but The Rev David Williams. He made me a librarian. Mr Williams taught me to catalogue books and Sarah Williams was also a school librarian although I didn't know until more recently. Exams were held in the library too.

A  still from ATV 1969 documentary

Another still from ATV 1969 documentary

Still from ATV 1969 documentary

The Rev DA William overseeing study in the new library.

The Chess Players in the library - A still from the 1969 ATV documentary.

Two new science rooms - the Physics / chemistry lab and the biology labs - luxury - we only had one before that did for for everything - 

Photo Coventry Telegraph 1966. Mr Matthew's biology lab - of course we were posing for the camera. Front left to right - David Woodward, Charles Joyce, Ian Woolridge, Shepherd, Stuart Moore. Back row Trev Teasdel, Frankie Fasulo, Stephen Tearse, Underwood, Hudson.

Bryn Powell teaching geography in the new block 1966 Coventry Telegraph Photo.

Headmaster George Parker planting a tree outside new block in the 70's.

Grainy photos above and below taken in the 70's in the new dorm rooms.

Dormitory in the new block c 1976
1st on left, Nigel Fisher, 4th from left was Nathan Johnson, 5th from left, was Phil Herd also from Lancashire.
Photo via Nigel Rigby

Overhead view of the new school block.

Coventry Telegraph 2010

In 1966 the old science lab by the swimming pool was converted into a recreation room / coffee bar. - it had new paving and steps down to the drive by the swimming pool. Terry Walker (art teacher) got us to do a pop art / dada college on the wall, cutting up images from magazines etc. and Ralph Aldhous contributed some art work to the room. I remember Jimi Hendrix Purple Haze coming out and hearing it for the first time in that coffee bar, and watching the Monkees. Very arty and I think was Terry Walker's idea to have an arty café. The above photo was taken there in 70's.

The Pioneer Centre in the noughties - you could still see the 'New' block, re-christened as Forest Lodge, before it was demolished in 2010. The new blocks of the Pioneer Centre were built on the former Rugby pitch where further 'new blocks' of the school were originally planned!

Oh dear Tony Booton - What have you done to our 'New Block' ? Photo from Coventry Telegraph 2010.

Coventry Telegraph 2010 "A spokesman for what is now the Pioneer Centre said: “And this week, one of the buildings, known as Forest Lodge, which once housed classrooms with dormitories above, is to be bulldozed. The process of demolishing Forest Lodge will mark the end of an era for the hundreds of pupils, now in their 60s and 70s, who lived and studied there.....And every month the centre welcomes a constant stream of past pupils, many of whom bring their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to see the site of their old school and enrich the history of the current centre with their stories and memories, often involving Forest Lodge.”