THIS IS FINDON - Schooldays in Findon, West Sussex, U.K. up until the mid 1850s.

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30th December 2007. This is the view from high above the summit of Cissbury Ring, looking west, over the village of Findon. Directly below is the Cissbury Estate. Church Hill is middle centre with the Blackpatch hillside beyond, also in shade. The glass houses of Rogers Farm are centre left.

Photograph by Grahame Algar.

SCHOOLDAYS IN FINDON UP TO THE MID 1850s.

When were the first school lessons held in Findon? Without a doubt I think that the first school teacher can be said to be Thomas Story who became the vicar of Findon in 1562 and stayed for the next ten years. He starting teaching pupils in 1569, and from then on a teacher was licenced until 1579.

In 1613 a licence was issued to the curate of Findon to teach.

The village had an unlicensed schoolmaster in the parish in 1622-3.

By 1762 only reading was taught, presumably by the incumbent.

There was a 3-day school in 1818, attended by 69 children. Findon was a rural community with some 477 inhabitants at this time.

A school on School Hill was built by subscription in 1829 on land donated by William Westbrook Richardson of Findon Place. He was also the supplier of the necessary building materials.

By 1833 there were 35 boys and 56 girls and the school was supported by subscriptions and payments. The Findon School was one of the many schools started by the National Society for the Education of the Poor according to the principles of the Church of England. A small grant was received from the Government of the day.

Evening school was also held in the winter for adults. The school children in those days met in the School house where the head teacher lived. (The house was eventually demolished when the new extensions were built in 1970).

In the Spring of 1836, Findon was suddenly hit by an extremely hard frost at night and all the ponds were completely frozen over. It was remarkable weather for the time of year. This was followed by high winds on May Day which ruined the village festivities. The poor school children ventured out as planned. They were beautifully decked with their May garlands but were taken by the cruel gusts and battered and blown all over the place. The celebrations in 1836 were quite ruined for the younger generation of Findon.

It is known that there were separate rooms at the school on School Hill for boys and girls around 1846-7. Twenty-three boys and fifty-seven girls attended on weekdays, most of them on Sunday too. Six boys and seven girls attended on Sunday only — I guess they were working during the rest of the week. It was all go in those days. Ten older boys attended the evening school.

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