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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 30

B—School Buildings

B—School Buildings.

Before the date of Mr. Forster's Act, elementary schools throughout the country usually consisted of one large room and a small class-room, or perhaps in some instances two small class-rooms. From the time when the earliest school of the School Board was planned, the Board determined to provide a larger number of class-rooms in each school, in order to ensure more effective teaching.

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One of the earliest schools erected by the Board was entirely on the class-room system, and in recent years the tendency has been more and more in this direction. The size of the class-rooms depends on the composition of the staff. The Board, generally speaking, have been in the habit of reckoning that an adult teacher can take charge of an average class of 60 children, and a pupil teacher of 30 children. The class-rooms, as a rule, accommodate 60 children; but class-rooms have also been arranged for 90 children, so that an adult teacher and a pupil teacher may work side by side. Amongst the later schools regard has also been had to the different numbers of children in different standards, and rooms accommodating-other numbers, such as 50 and 70 children, have been introduced.

As the Board are now building all their schools on the class-room system, it is desirable that there should be one general assembly room for religious instruction, collective lessons, music, addresses of head teachers, examinations, &c. The Board are therefore building a central hall to each department in all new schools.

In regard to the question of lighting, the class-rooms are invariably lighted from the left, unless other exigencies of the plan preclude this arrangement. Thus where it is considered desirable to have two class-rooms in a line, in order to be able easily to throw them together, only one room can be lighted from the left, the other being lighted from the right.

The wanning of all the new schools built by the Board is effected with hot-water pipes, chiefly low pressure with large pipes, although in some cases high-pressure water and in others low-pressure steam has been adopted. These are supplemented with open fires in some of the class-rooms—notably in the babies' rooms, where the cheerful influence of a bright fire is important for the little ones between three and five years of age.

A most vital point in connection with the planning of schools is the ventilation, whereby copious draughts of fresh air are admitted into the rooms, and ample arrangements made for the extraction of the foul air. The rooms are thus found singularly fresh and sweet, even at the close of school work. It would be impossible to point out in detail all the various methods used to ensure the constant vivifying influence of fresh air during school hours, seeing that they must necessarily vary under different circumstances; but it must be sufficient to state that the greatest importance is attached to the principle.

In all the early schools built by the Board, the w.c.'s for the children consisted of continuous iron troughs partially filled with water, separated for the purpose of single closets by wood divisions. It has been found that these iron troughs corrode; and, as the flushing had to be done at one end by the caretaker, it was a very unpleasant, not to say dangerous, operation. These have nearly all been removed, and replaced with white enamelled stoneware fittings, with automatic flushers, which ensure a proper cleansing as often as they are set to act, while the use of a stop-cock prevents the waste of water when the school is not in use. A proper system of man-holes and inspection shafts is provided to all the drains, which are ventilated through their entire length.

The great care exercised in reference to sanitary matters has no doubt had a powerful effect in preventing the Board Schools from becoming the centres of contagion or infection. Still, in spite of this, difficulty is experienced, especially in the closely crowded districts of London. To obviate any danger, a system of disinfectants is used, by which it is believed the children arc, as far as possible, protected from disease. "Whenever several children are seized with the same disease in a school, it is the practice of the Board to close the building for a few days, and to thoroughly disinfect the whole before re-opening.

In the schools of three storeys the staircases are placed at each side of a block of mezzanine floors, consisting alternately of cloak rooms and teachers' rooms. In one corner of the block the coal-lift is provided, with access to each floor and a direct communication with the cellar in the basement. All the Board Schools of great height are provided with a lightning: conductor.

It has been felt by the Board that a proper playground is absolutely essential, particularly in those parts of London where there are few open spaces. The Board have consequently, wherever it is possible, secured an adequate site. In the cases where, owing to the denseness of the population, land is very dear and a site of an adequate size to ensure fairly large playgrounds is prohibitive on account of its price, the Board have erected schools of three storeys in height with a playground for the departments occupying the top floor over the whole area of the school building. These playgrounds on the top of the school are much appreciated.

The earliest sites purchased by the Board have proved to be insufficient in area, when judged by the light of later experience. While the sites formerly chosen varied from one quarter of an acre to half an acre, it is now no uncommon thing in the outlying portions of the metropolis to find sites ranging from an acre to an acre and a half.

These playgrounds are open not only to children on the roll of the Board Schools, but also to other children in the neighbourhood during good behaviour at certain times.

One or more taps, with constant supply of water and cups for drinking, is provided in each playground.

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In voluntary elementary schools there was usually a teacher's residence, and the teacher had charge of the building. It has been felt, however, by the London School Board that in the interest of the teachers it is desirable that they should dwell at some little distance from the place of their work; and the Board have consequently, in lieu of teachers' residences, built schoolkeepers' houses.

Drawings of London Board Schools.
3. Rathfera Road School, Catford, accommodating 800 children, framed picture Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
4. Goodrich Road, East Dulwich, accommodating 1,600 children, framed picture Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
5. Hackford Road, Brixton accommodating 1,000 children, framed picture Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
6. Berner St., St. George's-in-the-East accommodating 1,234 children, framed picture Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
7. Lavender Hill, Lavender Hill accommodating 1,200 children, mounted print Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
8. Woodland Road, Upper Norwood accommodating 800 children, mounted print Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.
9. Hugh Myddleton, Clerkenwell accommodating 2,000 children, 14 sheets, mtd. Lent by the Arehitect of the Board, T.J.Bailey, Esq.