Teddington: Schools

SCHOOLS.

Dorothy (d. 1697), widow of Sir Orlando Bridgeman, left £40 to buy land in trust for educating poor children. (fn. 1) The income, which was for many years £2, was given by the vestry for over a hundred years to dame schools in the parish: in 1763 the mistress was apparently chosen because her mother was likely to 'come on the parish'. (fn. 2) This schooling was supplemented for part of the 18th century by a charity school supported by subscriptions, which contained 44 pupils in 1760, and by a legacy (will proved 1790) of short-term annuities for educating three girls. (fn. 3) By 1819 the income had increased to £20. (fn. 4) In 1824 most of it was given to two dame schools containing together twelve children. The balance was at that time used by the vestry for other purposes. (fn. 5) In 1832 one of the mistresses was found to be very inefficient, while the other was charging more for the charity children than for others. The vestry consequently diverted the payment from the first forthwith to the recently opened boys' school, and from the second, later on, to the new girls' school. (fn. 6)

The boys' school was that generally known in the 19th century as Teddington Public School. It was opened by subscription in 1832, under the patronage of Queen Adelaide, who gave £100. (fn. 7) Its building still survives within that of St. Mary's and St. Peter's C. of E. Primary School, as it is now called. According to the Brougham Commissioners (fn. 8) there was a National school in Teddington as early as 1824, but there is no other evidence of this and the Public School seems to have been the first proper school in the parish. (fn. 9) In 1843 a girls' and infants' school was added to the original building, and both schools received government grants from 1852. In that year they contained about 170 pupils. (fn. 10) By 1863 there was apparently a third schoolroom, for infants, (fn. 11) and in 1868 the building was again enlarged. (fn. 12)

Although under its trust deed of 1863 the catechism was not to be taught to dissenting children in the Public School, the fact that the vicar was chairman of the committee (fn. 13) was probably one of the reasons why the Station Road Undenominational School attached to Christ Church was founded. (fn. 14) It was opened about 1865. (fn. 15) In 1867 it took infants only, but by 1871, when it began to receive government grants, it had two schoolrooms and two classrooms and took children of all ages. (fn. 16)

In 1867 the vicar opened a school in a cottage at Teddington Wick. (fn. 17) After the Education Act, 1870, was passed, a voluntary rate was levied and, as a result, the cottage school was replaced in 1875 by St. Mark's School in Schoolhouse Lane. (fn. 18) St. Mark's received government grants for a short while about 1880 but then ceased to do so until 1887. (fn. 19) In 1876 a new infants' schoolroom and classroom were opened at the Public School. (fn. 20) In spite of this there were still not enough schools for the rapidly growing population: in 1879 a ratepayers' committee was formed to try and supply the deficiency without having recourse to a school board, (fn. 21) and in 1880 a new boys' department was provided in a separate building at the Public School. St. Mark's School was enlarged in 1889 and again in 1893 and the Station Road School in 1896. (fn. 22) The first building of another Church school, the Victoria School in Princes Road, was opened in 1899, and a second one in 1901. (fn. 23)

In 1884 the Roman Catholic School in Fairfax Road, South Teddington, had been opened. (fn. 24) It started with a schoolroom and a classroom, in which it had about 50-70 children of all ages, (fn. 25) and after a separate church had been opened in 1893, the school also took over the upper floor of the building. It has been managed almost since its opening by Sisters of Charity of St. Paul. (fn. 26)

Together all these schools accommodated about 2,200 children in 1899 of whom nearly 800 were in the Public School. (fn. 27) Under the 1902 Act Teddington came under the county council and a temporary council school was opened in 1905, to be superseded in 1907 by the Stanley Road Council School. (fn. 28) This provided for 400 children at first, and a junior mixed department was added in 1910. Soon afterwards the original part of the building was restricted to senior boys, while the Station Road and Victoria Schools took only girls and infants. (fn. 29) In 1927 St. Mark's Council School, in St. Mark's Road, was opened for 320 children and in the following year the old St. Mark's School in Schoolhouse Lane, now taking infants only, was transferred to the council. From 1929 the new school took only senior children and the rest of the schools in the parish were reorganized and in some cases enlarged and altered. The result was that the Victoria School took senior girls only and the Stanley Road School took senior boys and younger children. Except for the Roman Catholic school, which went on taking children of all ages, all the other schools thereafter only took juniors. (fn. 30) In 1936 the Station Road Unsectarian School was enlarged and transferred to the council as Christ Church Council School. (fn. 31) Since 1947 the Stanley Road Secondary Modern School has taken girls as well as boys. A new county school for 240 infants, the Bridgeman School in Cromwell Road, was opened in 1953. (fn. 32)

In September 1957 the approximate numbers of pupils at the secondary schools were: Stanley Road County School, 530 boys and girls; Victoria C. of E. School, 105 girls; St. Mark's County School, 285 boys and girls. The Christ Church County School had some 220 juniors, the Stanley Road County Schools 430 juniors and 190 infants, St. Mark's County School, Schoolhouse Lane, 50 infants, and the Bridgeman County School 170 infants. Like the Victoria School, St. Mary and St. Peter's (once the Public School) remained a Church of England school, with 260 juniors and infants, and the Roman Catholic school had about 110 children of all ages. (fn. 33)

A school of science and art had been opened in Church Road by 1902. (fn. 34) It is later known to have been managed by the county higher education committee. (fn. 35) The science classes had been discontinued by 1932 and the school was closed altogether about 1947. The building is now used as a clinic. (fn. 36)

In 1800 there was a boarding school in the High Street (fn. 37) but the three private schools in existence in 1833 had all been started since 1819. (fn. 38) By 1878 there were three private girls' schools, one boys', and one commercial school. In 1902 there were eight private schools and in 1924 nine. (fn. 39) At both dates they included the St. Paul's Roman Catholic Convent School (started c. 1885) (fn. 40) and the Summerleigh School. (fn. 41) In 1957 there was only one independent school, which was for girls, in addition to the convent school. (fn. 42)