Conservation Report - Education

Education

It would appear that there was a church school in Luddenden well before the first school was built in 1825. In the Archbishop Herring’s visitation returns of 1743, it reads that “We have a school house repaired at the expense of the chapelry but not endowed wherein about twenty children are taught to read English, and catechism.” It also appears from papers relating to Midgley Township, that a school existed between 1752 and 1767. There is no evidence as to where this school was sited, but obviously no less than 20 children were being taught to read from 1743. It is also worth remarking upon the fact that the subscription library attached to the Lord Nelson Inn operated from 1776 and presumably was patronised by people who had had some education.

In 1811, the National Society under the Church of England started providing schools under church auspices. The then curate of Luddenden, the Rev. Thomas Sutcliffe, who had charge for over 30 years from 1792, began to collect subscriptions for building a church school. The school was built and opened in 1825. By 1834, it was 13

recorded that they had 40 scholars. During the first half of the 19th century, most children would be in work, and the only education they got was in the Sunday schools. The Free Methodist Chapel, for example, had Bible, Testament, alphabet and reading classes. Education was minimal in that children were only there once a week, but they were given a start from which they could go on to educate themselves. Evidence given to the Assistant Handloom Weavers’ Commission in Bradford in 1839 suggested that about two thirds of the adult weavers could read, but only about one quarter could write.

The 1844 Factory Act fixed the minimum age for starting work as eight, and children under 13 were to go to school half-time, spending either the morning or afternoon in school. This greatly increased the demand for school places, and led to an extension at the National School in 1856. By 1872, the numbers were such that a second Anglican Church School was opened. This led to a re-organisation, so that the new school took in the infants, whilst the earlier school took the older children through to school-leaving age. The 1870 Education Act allowed the setting up of School Boards, who were able to levy a rate and build the so-called ‘Board Schools’. As a result of this, the Midgley Board School was opened in 1877. This was very relevant to education in Luddenden. There had always been rivalry between the churches, and right through until the middle of the 20th century, it was always the custom that children whose parents attended the Methodist Churches would go to Midgley School, whilst those whose parents were Anglicans attended the Church Schools.