[Dotann]

I lived in Shoreham as a child in the Childrens Home in Ham street,I believe it is now council offices
I was wondering after all these years if any of my friends are still living in Shoreham particularily Clara Colvin and Betty Barton,of course their surnames may have changed,but someone may remember them or maybe family members.
I was known as Dorothy Barker,my sister Joan andbrother Patrick were also in the home.
Dotann

[Spinalman]

[quote name='Dotann' date='Jul 25 2006, 01:57 PM' post='5110']
I lived in Shoreham as a child in the Childrens Home in Ham street,I believe it is now council offices
I was wondering after all these years if any of my friends are still living in Shoreham particularily Clara Colvin and Betty Barton,of course their surnames may have changed,but someone may remember them or maybe family members.
I was known as Dorothy Barker,my sister Joan andbrother Patrick were also in the home.
Dotann
[/quote]


Hi Dotann,

We had someone here researching their father's history and there were trying to locate the school or home in Ham Road. I am unsure which was which, as there was St. Wilfreds Home, later council offices, then demolished in the 80's to make way for the Police Station and a supermarket - and also there was another building on the North side of Ham Road, nearly opposite St. Wilfreds, that backs on to the railway, which still exists - this may have been a school.

We had a photo of St. Wolfreds on this site, but it has been deleted recently. If you are interested I'll post it here.

[richard]

[quote name='Guest_dotann_*' date='Jul 26 2006, 01:42 PM' post='5119']
Hi Paul.
Yes the home was called St Wilfreds but that was a few years after I left.
I would certainly be very pleased to receive the photo of St Wilfreds
Dotann
[/quote]

Try this link and scroll down. The whole of St Wilfrids history is there. I believe my auntie Rita went to School on the north side years ago.

http://users.ox.ac.uk/~peter/workhouse/Steyning/Steyning.shtml

[Dotann]

[quote name='richard' date='Jul 26 2006, 01:48 PM' post='5120']
Try this link and scroll down. The whole of St Wilfrids history is there. I believe my auntie Rita went to School on the north side years ago.

http://users.ox.ac.uk/~peter/workhouse/Steyning/Steyning.shtml
[/quote]

Hi I tried the link but could not find anything about St Wilfreds History but thanks for your help.
Dotann

[richard]

The Shoreham Workhouse
Steyning's first union workhouse, designed by a Mr Elliot, was built in 1836 on a two-acre site on Ham Road at Shoreham-by-Sea near the railway station. It was built by Mr W Brooks at a contract price of £3,850 for which a thirty-year loan of £4,300 was taken out by the union. The workhouse location and layout are shown on the 1875 map below.


Shoreham-by-Sea workhouse site, 1875


Later additions to the buildings included infirmaries in 1870, 1880, and 1893, vagrants' wards, and a chapel. However, by the 1890s, its accommodation and facilities were decided to be inadequate and plans began to erect a new establishment at a much larger site at Kingston-b-Sea.

St Wilfrid's Children's Home
The old Shoreham workhouse site was retained by the union and adapted for use as a children's home known as St Wilfrid's. Initially 42 children were accommodated in each of what were referred to as the Old Infirmaries and 36 in the New Infirmary. These became known as Home 1 (for older boys), Home 2 (under-eights), and Home 3 (for older girls). The old workhouse buildings as the west of the site were subsequently demolished.


Shoreham-by-Sea children's homes site, 1912


The children in the homes wore a grey uniform and yellow and black striped tie, with black boots for the boys, and a pinafore and lace-up boots for the girls.

Children got up before 7am and did household chores such as polishing floors before breakfast at 8am. Bedtime was at 8pm although the young children were woken at 9pm to go to the toilet. Anyone wetting the bed was paraded around with the wet sheet around their head and then given a cold shower. In 1907, a total of 127 children were in the homes although there were only 92 cots and beds so some bed-sharing was taking place.

Boys were taught carpentry and shoemaking, while girls were prepared for domestic service. A boys' Drum and Fife band was started by the industrial trainer in 1905 and the band sometimes played at local functions. Some boys from the homes went on to join the training ship Exmouth.

Visiting at the homes was severely restricted. Parents who were in the main workhouse could visit their children once every six weeks, mothers on Saturday afternoons, and fathers on Sunday. Parents outside the workhouse could visit every three months on special application to the Superintendent.

As well as the main homes site, the union also operated children's "cottage homes" just to the north of St Wilfrid's — two in Gordon Road and four at the east end of Rosslyn Road.

[Spinalman]

[quote name='Guest_dotann_*' date='Jul 26 2006, 01:42 PM' post='5119']
Hi Paul.
Yes the home was called St Wilfreds but that was a few years after I left.
I would certainly be very pleased to receive the photo of St Wilfreds
Dotann
[/quote]



http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/9429/stwilfredsfx8.jpg

is the photo of St Wilfred's in 1980. The older parts had been demolished earlier. I remember fondly going here in the early 60's to get my orange drink from the welfare office there (I was 3 or 4)

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/839/picture14xl5.png

http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/7162/picture3pn2.png

These are the two plans from the excellent Workhouses site.

[Spinalman]

Here is a photo of the old school in Ham Road.

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/60852

[Spinalman]

[quote name='Guest' date='Aug 17 2006, 01:36 PM' post='5253']
Well I don't remember this building at all.
Al I can remember about Ham Road was a row of cottages opposite St Wilfreds,yet I used to walk down Ham Road to go school and must have passed this impressive building.
[/quote]


Hi Dot Ann,

Yes I too remember the cottages, some with stable door style front doors. The school was(is) quite a way along ham Road opposite what is now the flats almost on corner of Sury Street...IIRC

[jo]

Hi, My father went to the shorham childrens home in the 1940s he was adopted in 1947, he has lovely memories of this place, he remembers lining up for viewing of potential parents to choose you on a Sunday, they had to wear their Sunday bests. Any one with any memories, would be lovely to hear from you, his name as Christopher Robin Curd, now a Marsh

[Spinalman]

[quote name='jo' date='12 April 2012 - 11:48 AM' timestamp='1334227695' post='46893']
Hi, My father went to the shorham childrens home in the 1940s he was adopted in 1947, he has lovely memories of this place, he remembers lining up for viewing of potential parents to choose you on a Sunday, they had to wear their Sunday bests. Any one with any memories, would be lovely to hear from you, his name as Christopher Robin Curd, now a Marsh
[/quote]

Hi, and a warm welcome to the forum Jo. DotAnn who started this thread has some other posts on the forum about St. Wilfred's in ham Road:
http://www.shorehambysea.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=311&view=findpost&p=5142


Just so you know, there were two children's homes: the St. Wilfred's and the one near Buckingham Park called the Down's School. There was a super run of posts from someone who was at the Down's school with his sister... he later emigrated as I recall. I have tried to find the thread here but came up blank... I'll delve a bit more.

[Nelson]

The 'Downs School' thread shows a number of photos from the chap who lived with his sister next to the school. Malcolm from Australia lived on the Beach http://www.shorehambysea.com/forums/index.phpshowtopic=2689&st=0&p=27884&hl=Malcolm&fromsearch=1&#entry27884
but didn't go to the Children's Home - are those the ones you're thinking of?

[Billium]

[quote name='Nelson' date='12 April 2012 - 15:16 PM' timestamp='1334240190' post='46898']
The 'Downs School' thread shows a number of photos from the chap who lived with his sister next to the school. Malcolm from Australia lived on the Beach http://www.shorehambysea.com/forums/index.phpshowtopic=2689&st=0&p=27884&hl=Malcolm&fromsearch=1&#entry27884
but didn't go to the Children's Home - are those the ones you're thinking of?
[/quote]
I do wish I could get my Brothers to come on here, they have fantastic memories of "The Home" as it was known in our House.
My Dad used to work at St.Wilfrids, and my Brothers often used to be round there.
Sadly none of my brothers are teccy, and do not use computers, and I live too far away to help them.
My Brother Pete does email, as does my Brother Ben in Australia, and Brother John in New Zealand, but he is getting on a bit now (83),he used to live on a Houseboat the SUEZ.
I must try and find a way to get some of their Stories.

[PeterW]

[quote name='Billium' date='13 April 2012 - 09:49 AM' timestamp='1334306996' post='46931']
I do wish I could get my Brothers to come on here, they have fantastic memories of "The Home" as it was known in our House.
My Dad used to work at St.Wilfrids, and my Brothers often used to be round there.
Sadly none of my brothers are teccy, and do not use computers, and I live too far away to help them.
My Brother Pete does email, as does my Brother Ben in Australia, and Brother John in New Zealand, but he is getting on a bit now (83),he used to live on a Houseboat the SUEZ.
I must try and find a way to get some of their Stories.
[/quote]
Quite a few years ago, a Mr Aldrington asked, in the Argus, if anyone had pictures of the Childrens Home. His reason was that he had been found abandoned on the door steps of one of the buildings, which he was named after. Aldrington House.

[jo]

[quote name='Spinalman' date='12 April 2012 - 13:12 PM' timestamp='1334236344' post='46896']
Hi, and a warm welcome to the forum Jo. DotAnn who started this thread has some other posts on the forum about St. Wilfred's in ham Road:
http://www.shorehambysea.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=311&view=findpost&p=5142


Just so you know, there were two children's homes: the St. Wilfred's and the one near Buckingham Park called the Down's School. There was a super run of posts from someone who was at the Down's school with his sister... he later emigrated as I recall. I have tried to find the thread here but came up blank... I'll delve a bit more.
[/quote]
Many thanks, that would be interesting to read. I'll have to do a bit more research into which one he was in.