There is evidence of a school in the parish since 1705, and it is
believed that a school of some type existed earlier. In the eighteenth
century it only catered for eight children. In 1813 new premises were
acquired, and a school for twenty-four girls and twenty-four boys was
established. The existing building dates from1850, and at the turn of
the twenty first century, accommodated some fifty children aged four to
eleven.
Little information is available to us about the school before the 1860s,
but at that time a school log book was started, giving brief but daily
accounts of school life at a time before compulsory education was
introduced. Many of the entries are repetitious and routine, as might be
expected from a small rural village school, but not all! Collectively
they give an insight to the life of the village through the activities
of the school children and the teaching staff.
The Web Museum features a series of entries covering life in Winsham
School from 1863. Also included are extracts from School Inspector’s and
Diocesan Inspector’s reports.
They indicate how children’s lives have changed since those days, but
whether children themselves have changed much is much more open to
debate! These records tell of happy times, uncertain times and events of
sadness and poignancy, which resonate across the intervening years. Currently the period from 1863 to the 1880s is covered. Eventually it is hoped that the extracts for the period covering the next forty years will be included. |
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