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The time now in Ruislip |
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HAWTREY HOUSE
Below, the "school" as it was in September 2005 - just two large semis!
Hawtrey House was a preparatory school for 4 to 11 year olds, dating I think from the late thirties until the early sixties, when it was taken over by Athol House, later reverting to private property. Its clientele was largely the newly arrived lower middle classes that occupied the housing developments, mushrooming across the fields of Eastcote and Ruislip in the last years before the green belt came down.
Its
premises consisted of two converted semi-detached houses in Hawtrey Drive.
Looking at them face-on from across the street, the ground floor and upstairs
rooms to the right, made up the school while interconnecting upstairs to the
left were the private quarters of the Headmistress, Mrs Stimson, Mrs Elfrida
Stimson, a remarkable chain-smoking battleaxe, who had inherited the business
from her dead husband. Sometimes Mr Stimson’s authority still seemed to
prevail from the photograph of him in uniform fixed to the wall of the Head’s
own classroom, Form 1. It was generally accepted that he had been an air ace,
killed in action during the last War although he actually died when his plane
went astray over Lagos in 1946, a loss anyway from which I suspect his widow
never fully recovered.
The
authority which the dead man could no longer supply in person lived on in the
‘scout belt’ – it may indeed once have been his own belt - a deterrent all
the stronger for being so rarely used. It was once applied to two boys for
defying a temporary injunction against travelling to school in parties of three
or more, the balance-tipping member of the group, escaping because he never
tried to hide his presence. Otherwise the belt’s appearances were limited to
cameo moments on the head’s desk as an awful final warning against chronic
laughter.
Mrs
Stimson’s elder daughter, mistress of the upper kindergarten also worked for
the family firm, perhaps as a tribute to the teaching, two of her own children
attended as pupils. Hawtrey House was primarily a boys’ school aimed at
securing places in local minor public schools, particularly the Lower School of
John Lyon, regarded then and perhaps now as Harrow for the masses. Girls were
encouraged in the kindergarten but expected to disappear quietly before or
during the ‘Transition’, an intermediate class before the boys went on to
the school proper. Occasionally girls lingered on into the higher classes, Mrs
Stimson, surprisingly unable or unwilling to dislodge them.
The
uniform was royal blue with a blazer badge of two overlapping capital Hs. Winter
wear for boys in the kindergarten was roll-neck blue pullovers, changing to grey
shirts with blue ties higher up the school. In summer it was white shirts and at
all seasons, grey short trousers and black elastic sided house shoes indoors.
For the girls, as far as I can recall, it was grey skirts with blue cardigans
and blue berets in winter, blue and white striped dresses with boater hats in
the summer – rather fetching for a boy of four or five to contemplate.
Space
was at a premium: the classes were minute by any standard, ranging from perhaps
a dozen in the lower kindergarten to as few as four in the top form. Sports and
recreation breaks were taken in Eastcote Park, to which pupils were marched
twice a day in a chattering crocodile. There was a cycle shed, an old air-raid
shelter down the right-hand side of the back garden – no-one would have
thought of smoking behind it and for PT and the Christmas play, a journey on
foot, bike or bus to the school scout hut at West Ruislip. The 3rd
Ruislip Troop was affiliated to Hawtrey House, Elfrida Stimson doubling as the
equally formidable ‘Akela’ aided by a Baghera and a Balloo.
Downstairs
in the school, the main hall was opened up for assemblies and then divided in
two to separate the lower and upper kindergartens, who were taught on benches at
trestle tables. Each morning the infants marched to the front one at a time to
put their food for the morning break in a large biscuit tin. Lunches to me were
a mystery - possibly taken in a local café - because I always ate at home. The
higher classes of the preparatory school were taught at proper desks in separate
rooms, except for the tiny groups in forms three and four who were placed
together. It was Form 1 upstairs which gave on to the Head’s premises. In
normal circumstances the sinister domesticity the other side of that second door
was only breached to have a cut knee bathed and bandaged. It was from this room
that in time of crisis the scout belt was fetched and from here also came the
astonishing news, one freezing morning that King George VI had died.
Much
of the teaching at Hawtrey House was conducted by radio broadcasts, How
things began, with its stories of rampant dinosaurs,
Science in the community, intended for fifteen year olds and over. In 1954
or 5 we listened to the Derby. In normal lessons we wrote up notes on the Punic
Wars and Nebuchadnezzar. Years later I discovered that we had been taught
geography from a pre-war atlas although it would be churlish to say so now.
In ascending order, the teachers were Miss King, Mrs
Faithfull (sometimes Mrs Leakey), Mrs O’Brien, Mrs Stimson, Mrs Head and Mrs
Cousins. Those I missed included Mrs Farrant and Miss Emerson. Sometimes men
found there way on to the staff, like Mr Cornish and then there was Mr Mason,
who took us for PT down at the scout hut.
Of
the pupils, in stream of consciousness order, come the following (apologies to
those before or after or forgotten): Roger Troughton, Geoffrey Stone, John
Stewart, Timothy Millward, Tony Heavens, Michael Bonner, Andrew Panter, Peter
Morrell, Duncan Fenton, Nigel Shadforth and his older brother, Tony Painter,
Tony Townsend, Barry Annis, Wendy Annis, John Davies, Elizabeth Davies, Michael
Thomas, Jeremy Edwards, John Silver, Paul Tucker, Colin Golding, Kenneth
Gathergood, David Cunningham, Richard Cunningham, Peter Ballard, David Ballard,
Adrian Crosthwaite, Ann(e) Sayers, Ann(e) Finch, Janet Hope, Moira Freeguard,
Kathleen Bryant, Margaret Dent, Christopher Fox, Nicholas Fox, Stephen Fox, Paul
Ross, Andrew Fulljames and his younger brother, Peter Buck, Rowland Buck,
Christopher Rumble and his younger brother, John Sygrove (died tragically),
Anthony Dean, Brian Lamfia, Martin and Rupert Pruetts (Prewitts?) and their
older brother, Ian Nicholas Gibbs, Nicholas Bastin, a Cope, a Gough, a Ward (Colin?surnames
were de rigeur at Hawtrey House) and his sister, Marian Ward, a Humphreys, a
Dufton, Richard Carver, Dudley Hughes, Sally Ann Faithfull, Ian Faithfull, David
Wilson, a Garland, Andrew Muxworthy, Peter Johnston, Eric Goldsworthy, John
Sturman…oh and a Germab boy, whose name hovers tantalisingly off the radar.
Attracted by the novelty of a British education there were also the sons of
American servicemen, serving at the South Ruislip airbase; Chris Chatham, a
Silvus, a Coffey: all later found going native in jeans and T shirt at the
American school in the old foreign office building down by Fore Street. Among
their number too was Donnie Schweikert, who came from Florida of an anglophile
family.
It
was at Donnie’s birthday party, appropriately enough, that I first learnt from
a globe that England was a tiny island off the coast of Europe, information suppressed
perhaps at Hawtrey House, which had no globe and was a universe all
too itself. Each school day for six years I travelled the mile there, sometimes
by bike, sometimes on foot, always embarrassed that I did not attend the state
school at the end of the road instead but never regretting that I was a pupil of
Mrs Stimson’s eccentric academy. At the end of every year the assembly sung Lord
dismiss us with thy blessing to the tune of Deutschland
Deutschland uber alles. As I worked my way through the school,
becoming in due course one of the giants in the back row that had awed me on my
arrival I patiently waited for the day when I would be one of the all
who here shall meet no more. In the event I missed it, I was sick on the
last day with infected glands
And from another visitor comments as follows:-
And another visitor writes:-
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Mike Thomas 05/11/2004
Alan Thomas
Like her husband, she was devoted to the Scout Movement. I recall Mr. Simpson (Stimson? ed) well but although I remember news of his death, did not know the circumstances until I read details of it on this page. Even at my then early age, I felt that she made most of the decisions!
One of the couple was related to the comedian Gillie Potter whom they could be relied upon to persuaded to appear at various Ruislip and scout events. He would always appear wearing a blue blazer with a broad red arrow as the badge on the breast pocket and open his patter with "Hello England". We all thought him incredibly funny. As I recall, the Hawtrey House uniforms, like those for all the other local schools, were sold at Allingham's shop on the High Street.
"I am the youngest of the three Fox boys and attended Hawtrey House School between 1951 to 1958 . I have mainly happy memories of my life at both the School and in the 3rd Ruislip Scout Group (affiliated to the school).
Our Headmistress (proprietor of the School) was Elfrida M Stimson and
like many of her "boys" I have always held her in respect and with
affection. "Jumbo" as she was later nicknamed by many, came across
as a bit of a dragon and was very much one of the 'old school' but was
really quite soft at heart despite her threat and occasional use of the
"scout belt". In my early days at the school I recall she drove a
large green Austin 16 car which I believe she used for home collection of
some far flung pupils. This vehicle was later replaced by her beloved light
brown Rover 90 car which she kept until becoming too old to drive!
Each year at the end of the summer term she would tow her caravan (kept for
many years on the drive in front of the air raid shelter) to her beloved
camp sight at Saundersfoot near Tenby where she spent a few weeks on
holiday. It was also moved each year to the Scout camp site in Mad Bess
Woods for the annual District Cub Camp weekend. In her role as Assistant
District Commissioner her caravan took the best position and was always
sited below an oak tree in the top right hand corner of the camping field
where Jumbo had a good view of all the tents and of anyone entering or
leaving the site.
Life at the school has been ably described by others but I particularly
remember the rubber bricks (an early form of Lego) and the daily walk to the
park in pairs and in crocodile formation stopping at each road crossing to
await the command to cross from the teacher in charge. I believe that unless
it was raining heavily, we went to the park every school day regardless of
the temperature. Windows at the school were kept open, also regardless
of the temperature, to encourage pupils to breathe fresh air at all times.
In spring 1958, a pair of robins came in through the window and nested on a
bookshelf in the classroom. Lessons carried on as normal and the hatching of
the eggs and feeding of the chicks also carried on as normal. The local
press came to the school and took photos including a group photo of me,
Andrew Muxlow and Stephen Bowerman. An article and photo appeared in the
local paper the following week. I also recall the routine of removing our
winter black shoes or summer sandals upon arrival at school and changing
into black canvas house shoes. Shoes and coats etc were stored in two small
areas, one upstairs and the other downstairs, where there were pegs and open
wooden lockers.
My walk to school took me up Windmill Hill and along Old Hatch Manor. This
road, like a number of others in Ruislip at the time, had only a few houses
newly built along it and there was no metalled road surface or pavements.
The many plots of land not yet built upon made a great playground for
youngsters and negotiating the puddles or sliding on the frozen puddles
without getting soaked was great fun.
Although I was one of those fortunate ones who lived reasonably near to
school and went home for lunch, on a few occasions I recall going with those
pupils who had school lunches! This was a daily lunchtime crocodile
formation walk to a café called the "Mayfair" in Manor Way,
Ruislip Manor, where we had a meal at a negotiated price consisting of meat
and two veg and a pudding. I recall the veg was a bit watery and disgusting
but I was a lucky pupil who did not have to go there often.
As described, PE lessons took place at the Scout Hut (later named Stimson Hall) in West Ruislip but swimming lessons took place once a week at the outside Lido Pool in Uxbridge. This I loved, even though some days the temperature seemed barely above freezing. Once a week during the Summer Term each group would walk crocodile formation from the school to Ruislip Manor Station. Catch a train to Uxbridge Station and then a crocodile formation walk to the Uxbridge Lido. Lessons would first be "land drill" on the terrace beside the pool and then jump in for "water drill" with floats. I believe nearly all those who went regularly, learnt to swim adequately. But with Jumbo on hand most pupils learnt fast. To warm up afterwards, I would have a hot Bovril drink and a cheese roll from the Lido café. Then we all went back to Hawtrey House School doing the reverse journey.
Stimson Hall was also used for the School's annual nativity play and other plays where delighted parents and grandparents could watch their little darlings performing on the wooden stage. I took menial roles in several plays but the role I particularly remember was playing Friar Tuck in a performance of Robin Hood. I had not been chosen because of my size as I had to wear a cushion under my brown robe! The lead role was played by Chris Downing. I also recall doing a pirate play one year. Occasionally when on the stage we would get splinters in our hands or feet (or elsewhere) as the wooden floor was not very smooth!
My eldest brother, Christopher, went on to boarding school in Taunton and now lives partly in Essex and partly in France. My other brother Nicholas and I both went on to John Lyon School. Nicholas lives in Somerset and I in Kent. Our Mother, Constance Fox and John Stewart's Mother, Nancy Stewart, both assisted Akela (Jumbo) at the 3rd Ruislip Cub meetings and events. Although they did not wear uniforms, my mother was known as Baloo and Nancy as Bagheera. For many years they were Akela's background helpers and I know they were much appreciated by her.
In October 2004 I attended Andrew and Catherine Fulljame's 40th wedding anniversary celebrations at his house in Oxford. Those former pupils of Hawtrey House School who attended were:-
Andrew Fulljames
Celia Fulljames
John Stewart
Elizabeth Davies (now Stewart, as married John)
John Davies
Christopher Buck
Rowland Buck
Christopher Fox
Stephen Fox
Other former pupils I have been in contact with in recent years are:-
Nigel Griffiths
Brian Griffiths
Andrew Muxlow (aka Andrew Marlow )
Paul Ross
Names of former pupils I recall but who have not yet been mentioned are:-
David Andrea
Stephen Bowerman
Kim Emerson
Christopher Downing
Peter Downing
Timothy Faithfull
David Garland
Danny Mosergard
Cynthia Muxlow
Christopher Payne
I have compiled a list of the names (Surname & First name) of former
pupils of Hawtrey House School which currently totals 89.
Incidentally, it was not stated who wrote the original contribution on
Hawtrey House and unless he/she wishes to remain anonymous, his or her
name would be of interest."
It was very interesting to read the articles by various people describing their experiences of attending school at numbers 18 and 20, Hawtrey Drive, known in those days as Hawtrey House preparatory school; for I too, was a pupil of the School.
My name is Chris Sparks and was there from September 1934 to December 1939. My memories of the place, however, are slightly different to what I read. The Modus Operandi was generally the same, except that the classrooms were all on the ground floor. The two downstairs rooms of house number 18 being used as a hall or by the two kindergarten forms. The space where the kitchen would have been was the cloakroom. In number 20, the front room was shared by forms 1.2.3.4. and Junior 2. The back room was where the school lunch was served and used by the Stimsons as their dining room when the day-pupils had gone home. The only variance to this was in later years when a French man came to teach some of us French. We ‘Frenchies’, of which there were about fourteen, sat round the table in the dining room.
The upstairs rooms of number 20 were used by the Stimsons for their personal use and those of number 18 as dormitories; one for the two or three boarders; the other by the Stimson’s daughters, Elizabeth and Judy. As far as I can remember, none of the day pupils were allowed upstairs, except to go to the toilet. I was, perhaps, privileged, for living near to the school, during the holidays I played with the daughters and one of the boarders who stayed over the hol’s. I was then allowed access to these upper sanctums, mainly the front living room where I believe I spilt something on their settee. Another venue for our play was on the roof of the garage.
Almost all the lessons I attended were under the charge of Mr. W.B. Stimson. He I recall as a very ‘nice guy’; strict, but friendly. When he was in the classroom, he almost always wore his gown and mortar-board hat. As a divertissement to the lessons, he would tell us of his experiences as a district commissioner, or some such post that he’d previously held in West Africa. And occasionally when there was a free period, maybe because there were no games due to unfavourable weather, he’d bring out his marvellous box of tricks. This contained parts to make up numerous devices. The ones I can remember were an epidiascope, a pinhole camera, leclenche cells and shocking coils. One Christmas, I had the honour of being taken to a pantomime by him and his family; the boarder had gone home earlier than expected, so there was a ticket going spare.
His wife, Mrs E.M.Stimson, was mainly occupied teaching the Kintergarten and the only times I came under her jurisdiction was during my first few terms. She took us for handicraft, Scripture and Ann Driver’s broadcast, (Music and Movement). Although my contact with her was thus limited, if asked I wouldn’t have said she was particularly ferocious. In fact I recall her as being friendly and maybe even a touch motherly. (Perhaps my memory has failed me, it has in many other ways). Anyway, whatever she was like, there was never a threat from a belt. The only one I recall was an ornate scouter’s belt and this was only used to hold up Mr Stimsons knee length cord trousers that he wore when in scout’s uniform.
Games and sport were high on the agenda of school activities. Swimming, I think, took the prize. We spent what seemed like hours, standing on one leg in the back garden, simulating the actions and breathing for the breaststroke. For practical work, one morning a week, we were bussed to baths. These were usually the Empire pool at Wembley, but occasionally we were taken to some very hot baths in Ealing, or if the weather was really good, to the out-door pool at Uxbridge. Football was also popular. One afternoon a week we had a game on the pitch beside Kings College Road. But I have absolutely no recollection of where we played cricket. We surely must have played it somewhere, because I know we played matches against teams from other schools; but they were all away games. The master who took us to one of these matches said he would buy an ice cream for every boy who got someone out. I had developed a very unprofessional type of bowling, - ‘donkey droppers’, - and bowled, or more probably, scared out four of the opposing team. I was very disappointed when I only got one ice cream. Then there was the annual sports event; long jumps, high jumps, flat races, obstacle races, and other athletic tortures, which I was no good at doing. On the different years these were held on the Ruislip Rec. (by the sand pits), Manor Farm, (where the bowling green now is.) and a field beside King College Road. (Opposite to where the hockey ground now is.) For a while horse riding was also on the curriculum. At the start, one afternoon a week, ponies were brought to the school and we rode in the field behind the school; (In those days there were no houses between the ones on Hawtrey drive and those on Warrender Way.) This soon became a Saturday morning event and I had to cycle to the stables in Pinner to catch my horse.
As has been pointed out by other contributers, no kind parents took their little darlings to school in a car. However, either Mrs, or Mr Stimson did run a pupil taxi service. This was primarily for boys living on the other side of Ruislip, one as far away as Denham. It was a big car, but I doubt whether these days, it would be allowed to carry such a large number of passengers. We who lived East of the school had to fend for our selves. I did, however, get two rides in the car; once when I was invited to a birthday party in Denham, the other time, when I was taken to the West End for the pantomime.
The Stimsons certainly couldn’t be accused of being mean with their treats for their pupils. There was the annual summer outing. I went twice to the Aldershot Tattoo and twice to the Hendon Air show. Added to this there was the annual visit to Whitelies Christmas Bazaar.
Here we met the man with a cotton-wool beard and had a second turkey dinner. This I found ‘smashing’ even though my meagre pocket money rather limited my purchasing power.
Scouting was an activity associated with the school. The third Ruislip Wolf Cub pack had been started shortly after I came on the scene. This was a dedicated School pack and meetings were held at the school one afternoon each week during term time. Mr Stimson was Akela. Mrs Stimson was Baghera; something I think she had forgotten when years later I was sharply rebuked for addressing her as this.
We didn’t have a scout hut. When a venue for a party, or indoor games was required, we borrowed the first Ruislip’s hut behind Ruislip Woolworths. We also used their transport facilities when we went to a couple of jamborees held in Iver. We marched in the parades celebrating George Vth Jubilee and George VI th Coronation. The first was very hot and exhausting. The second was wet and windy; conditions I didn’t appreciate as I was carrying the colours. Other cub activities consisted of chasing each other round Ruislip woods, building bridges over the river Pinn and games in the various fields round the school. More sedate activities, like learning knots and semaphore, were carried out in a classroom or the school’s front garden. The school must have grown with me, because until I became eleven there were too few boys old enough to make up a scout patrol. So it wasn’t till circa 1938 that the ‘3rd Ruislip, Hawtrey House’ scouts came into existence. It consisted of one patrol, the Eagle patrol and I soon became its PL. But the war was ‘looming-large’ so there was not to be a lot of scouting activities. Most of our time was taken up collecting scrap paper. We did daily collections, mainly from the shops in Eastcote and Ruislip Manor, sort it at the school and then take it to the Small Barn at Manor Farm. We also learned various skills such as bandaging and acted as pseudo-casualties, being taken by lorry to St Vincents with labels attached to us. And finally there was a duty about which I remember very little. Starting in late 1939, groups of us had to report at 9 PM to Doctor Max Wilson’s surgery on Eastcote Road, (Opposite the entrance to the Ruislip Rec). Here we stayed late into the night.
This last activity had something to do with helping the civil defence in the event of an air-raid, but I don’t know exactly what. Perhaps one of my successors can enlighten me. I left Hawtrey House in December 1939 and so left the Scouts before any air raids occurred. Leaving the school then also meant that my parents didn’t have to cough up the mandatory sub towards the construction of the Hawtrey House air-raid shelter. Was this ever used ‘in anger’, or only as a bicycle shed? I wonder.
Chris. Sparks.
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| This picture was taken in the garden at Hawtery House in about 1955. It shows (left to right) Back row - Ian Barraclough (?), myself, Telford Payne, Michael Godden, ??. Front row - Malcolm Underwood, Roger Pegg, Jane Horton, David Hobbs, Brian Grout. | This picture, of the finale of a Nativity Play, was probably taken in 1953. The venue is presumably the West Ruislip scout hut. I do not know the names of those on the stage, but the front row standing are (left to right) Alistair ??, myself, ??, Michael Godden, Allan Robinson, Malcom Underwood, Nicky Nardeckia (?), ??, ??. |
It was a lovely sunny morning in September 1943. I was standing with my
mother on the corner of
I found Mrs
Stimson to be a firm disciplinarian but also compassionate when necessary.
She led the morning assembly with the appropriate prayers and hymns – the
School hymn being the now popularly revived ‘
My first teacher in the kindergarten
was Miss Thomas. At the age of five I had an instant crush on her. Until
then the only other female to cause me emotional flutters had been Snow
White in the Disney film. As well as teaching, Miss Thomas was also the
assistant to Mrs Stimson’s Akela on Cub afternoons.
All but one of
the teachers were ladies, the exception being Mr Harvey who took the
senior class in my last year. However, Mr Faithfull, Mrs Stimson’s
son-in-law who had a morning milk round, was the sports master during the
afternoons. Cricket and Football matches against other schools were played
in
Many years later when I was working
for British European Airways, I arrived for a new position in an office at
Heathrow. Who should be sitting there in the office but a smart young man
in company uniform ? Mr Faithfull. Our relationship at school had been Mr
Faithfull and Wright, but in the more informal working environment became
Bill and Alan. For many years Bill kept me up to date with the school and
‘mother’ as he referred to Mrs Stimson. He advised me of Mrs Stimson’s
death some time back in the 1970’s. Sadly Bill himself died only a year or
two ago.
My contemporaries, who I grew up
with in the period 1943-1949, included Donald Paul, John Walsh, Norman
Jeans, David Powell, Frank Bullin, Alan Young, Colin Pritchard, Brian
Relph and Brian Jeffries. I wonder where they all are now?
Alan Wright
January 2006
So are you on the picture above (click on it to enlarge)? The sender remembers as follows
Back row: Alan Thomas, Alistair ?, Nicky Nardekia?, ? ?, Telford Payne, Allan Robinson
Middle row: Roger Pegg, ? ?, Mrs Smith, Brian Grout, David Hobbs
Front row: Jane Horton, Elly Bray, Sally Darling
My name is Ray Lewis. I was in the 3rd Ruislip (Hawtrey
House) Scout troop in the late 40's and eventually became Troop Leader.
The Scout Master was a Mr Giles - can't recall his first name now, he
lived down near Ruislip Woods.
To the left is a photo with Mrs Stimpson in the centre, I am there on
the right, and Mr Giles is on the left. I too remember Gillie Potter
coming to entertain us, he was a very popular comedian on the radio at
the time.
I also remember the building of the Scout hut in West Ruislip. Didn't
know it was later named Stimson Hall - but quite appropriate.
Happy memories of a bygone age
Ruislip local schools index page
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