Part Return to Ardwick, January 1940

The first six months of the war were rather “quiet” and the expected German air raids did not materialise, leading some people to call it the “Phoney War”. Others called for evacuated children to return home. Most of the Manchester evacuees appeared to have adjusted to their new environment, although there were issues with some from time to time. About 85% of the Manchester evacuees were said to have remained in the Altrincham district following the Christmas holidays. But this was soon to change.

By January 1940, the decision had been taken to re-open certain schools in the evacuation areas of central Manchester.  One of these was Ardwick Central, located on Devonshire Street between Hyde Road and Stockport Road. Like St Gregory’s, it too had been evacuated, with most of its pupils being billeted in Bacup, a small town north of Manchester between Rochdale and Burnley. The date given for the re-opening was 15th January 1940 at 9.00am, when “148 boys and 158 girls from Ardwick Central, a total of 306, were due to recommence their studies working a shift system with St Gregory’s”.

Messrs Curran, Waldron, O’Brien, Whealing and Kerrigan were among the first teachers to be recalled from Timperley, together with about 170 boys. Within weeks Mr Fitzgerald and Mr Kerr were also recalled, followed by Mr Rocca, Mr Corney, Mr Andrew and Mr Clark.

By 19th January it was reported that the number of evacuees in the Altrincham district had been greatly reduced and was now approximately 1,530, of whom about 850 were from Manchester and 600 from Stretford. Most schools in the district were now able to work full time, with the exception of Wellington Road. One group, St Mary’s (Hulme) boys, had been transferred to Wellington Road, where they joined the rest of their school. This meant that these boys would have shared the premises with those from St Gregory’s who remained.

By 26th January it was possible for Ardwick Central’s 3rd and 4th years to work full time because St Gregory’s was not taking up all the available places, with many boys remaining at Timperley. By April Ardwick Central resumed full attendance, with St Gregory’s having moved back to its own building at Ardwick Green.

Throughout this time Mr Holmes appeared to have been based at Ardwick Central School, making frequent visits to Timperley to see how the boys who remained there were getting on. 

Ardwick Central later became Ardwick Technical High School. By the end of the 1950s its neighbouring schools included Nicholls Boys’ Secondary and Ardwick Girls’ Secondary. In 1967, the three schools amalgamated in the comprehensive system to form the Nicholls Ardwick High School.

Return to Ardwick Green, April 1940

News was received that the school had to be transferred to its “St Gregory’s home at Ardwick Green”, with the date given as 11th April 1940. Teachers spent several afternoons preparing the school, which had been guaranteed fit to receive pupils for instruction. However, the school was in no better condition than it was in months earlier. It now had shelter accommodation for 200, a figure that would determine the maximum number of boys and staff in the building at any one time. The plan was that “Classes 1,2,3,4 and 9 would attend half-time and classes 5,6,7 and 8 for half-time”, commencing 11th April. Having said this, many boys continued to remain in Timperley for a while and Mr Holmes continued to visit them, his last recorded visit there being on 15th May.

The decision as to which teachers remained in Timperley or returned to Ardwick Green may have been influenced by where they lived. For instance, Mr Holmes noted on 17th May that: “Mr Bill was returned to Timperley in view of his taking up residence there, Mr Murray coming to Manchester.” Teachers would have had to display great versatility and cooperation in ensuring the successful continuation of education in ever-fluctuating circumstances.

Once again, the logistics problem of moving and using books and resources would have had to be organised and dealt with so that staff and pupils had the means necessary to continue with purposeful lessons.

Departure of Mr Andrew

Mr Fred Andrew, the handicraft teacher, left the school in July 1940 in order to take up his duties with the Aircraft Production Scheme.

Manchester blitz

The German air raids of December 1940 caused much damage in Manchester and, as a consequence, “the school was re-opened [on 30th December] on account of the dislocation of social life occasioned by the air raid”.

Further evacuation

January 1941 saw the evacuation of 47 boys to Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, under the charge of Mr Corney and Mr Rocca, with five more boys joining them a few weeks later.

Attendance

Pupil attendance was obviously adversely affected by the frequent and lengthy air raids. On one occasion the school was closed on the instruction of the police owing to a time-bomb having been discovered in the vicinity.

Call-up

Mr W. McGlone, appointed only a few months previously, left the school to join his unit in the R.A.F.

Departure of Mr Rocca and Mr Merrick, 1941

Mr Kerr was sent to Poulton, the reception area, in place of Mr Rocca who returned to Ardwick Green. In August 1941, Mr Rocca left St Gregory’s to join the Fleet Air Arm, which was a branch of the Royal Navy. He would serve on HMS Sirius, a dido-class light cruiser named after the brightest star in the night sky, and saw action mainly in the Mediterranean. A few days later, Mr W. J. Merrick also left to join the RAF, followed by Mr John Bill and Mr Harry O’Brien.

Other teachers who left to do military duties during the war years include Mr G. Curran, Mr W. Hannon, Mr Bernard Berry, Mr R.J. Whealing and Mr Neville Dickenson, the last two taking up their duties towards the end of the war in 1945.

Running the school

Mr Holmes and his ever-changing staff had the arduous task of running the school under difficult and challenging conditions. The school carried on as normally as it could. There was a timetable, new admissions arrived in August, lessons were taught, books were ordered and delivered, examinations were held, Central Leaving Certificates were awarded, feast days were celebrated in the traditional way, HMIs visited, religious inspections occurred annually, masses were said, teachers left and others were appointed and so on. From time to time the school had to be closed for various reasons to do with the war, such as fuel shortages and air raids. An insight into life at the school during these years can be seen shortly in the excellent account given by Tony Glynn, a pupil at the time.

Staffing

Miss Valerie Dickenson was the school’s first female teacher when she began her duties in August 1941. More women teachers were to follow throughout the war years, with the appointments including Mrs Clare Holmes (wife of the headmaster), Miss E. McManus, Miss M. Curran, Miss C. Emberry, Miss E. Bolton, Miss M.B. Whealing, Miss R. Pardon and Mrs Mary Wilson. With some of the male teachers being called-up at very short notice, there could be some time before they were replaced. Supply teachers often stepped in to cover their classes. Sometimes relatives of existing staff were employed. Sometimes uncertificated teachers were taken on. 

Women’s teacher training

Some of the new female teachers had graduated from universities, whilst others had studied at teacher-training institutions that included Sedgley Park Training College, Prestwich, Manchester, and Our Lady’s Training College, Mount Pleasant, Liverpool.

School meals

During the Second World War the school meals service was expanded. In 1944, school meals and milk became a statutory duty. By February 1945, about one-third of the national school population were having school dinners, with 14% receiving free meals and the rest paying 4d or 5d to cover the cost of the ingredients. At St Gregory’s, it is probable that the demand for school meals was on the low side.

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