MIDWIVES – THE REAL THING. . .
Bess on the left, with her friend and colleague, Pat Rushton, in London.
There’s no real connection here with the Queen’s accession 60 years ago, or even the Coronation, but these amazing pictures (above and below) just seemed too good to miss, and are certainly in the spirit of the age. Those of us who were glued to the recent BBC-1 series Call the Midwife (due to be repeated at 9pm on Thursdays from June 7) will be astonished at the similarity of this photograph of Bess Crompton (then Bess Scarr) and her friend, Pat Rushton, to the pictures we saw in that series. Bess was completing her midwifery training at the City of London Maternity Hospital, and the year was 1947. Ah – so there’s the connection: Bess was in London and joined the celebrations on the eve of the wedding in November of the then Princess Elizabeth to Prince Philip.
Bess had started her four-year nursing training at Darlington in 1942, and then went to Liverpool to train as a midwife. Her final six months, from June to December, 1947, were in London. She returned to Askrigg just before Christmas that year – and got an emergency call-out to deliver a baby. “I still hadn’t got my certificate so technically I wasn’t qualified,” she says. The baby was safely delivered – and still lives in the village. But she won’t let me say who it is . . .
In 1951 Bess married Eddie Crompton and – ironically, given her training in dealing with people at the very beginning of life – she became deputy matron at High Hall old people’s home in Bainbridge. Then together she and Eddie managed old people’s homes in Buckinghamshire and Devon. Eddie trained as a social worker in Bristol (he’d previously been a commercial artist) not because he had to but because he believed care of the elderly required specialist skills.
Bess recalls it as a happy time, with the old people enjoying a caring, professional, and above all stimulating environment, with theatre trips, summer fetes, Burns’ night celebrations and keep fit, to name but a few of the social activities they provided. They must have been good – they were called to London in 1968 to give evidence to the committee which culminated in the Williams Report into Residential Care, which was eventually presented to Parliament.
Below – Bess had just helped deliver a little sister for these lively boys.
Below – her wedding to Eddie in 1951.
BE-RO – A RIGHT ROYAL CONNECTION
A genuine 1952 Be-Ro book (16th ed). It belonged to Karen Prudden’s mother.
The words I heard most when seeking 1950s memorabilia for the online Jubilee Scrap Book, were: “Oh – I’ve got a Be-Ro book,” or more likely: “I’ve got my mother’s Be-Ro book.” The next most oft repeated were: *We used to make lovely rock buns.” But my search for a genuine 1950s issue of the famous baking book proved problematic: the books bear the imprint of the edition number, but not the publication date. Karen (Prudden) had lent me two – the 16th and the 21st – both having belonged to her mother. But were either of them the genuine, 1952 article?
When I called the free phone number on the Be-Ro website for information, it took me a long time even to explain what Be-Ro was – I was through to (wouldn’t you know it?) an international call centre. After a 20-minute explanation I was told somebody would get back to me, and I was given a case number. “I’m asking about a recipe book, not reporting a murder,” I tetchily told the man in the call centre. After a few more days, I eventually got the answer from a lady at Rank Hovis, current owners of the brand, and yes, she said, the 16th edition was from 1952. Success!
The amazing thing is that there is a direct connection between Be-Ro flour and royalty, so it’s especially appropriate to feature it in the Jubilee scrap book. Here’s the story . . .
“Thomas Bell founded a wholesale grocery firm . . . in Newcastle in the 1880s. Among his top-selling brands were ‘Bells Royal’ baking powder and a self-raising flour. Following the death of Edward VII [in 1910] it became illegal to use the Royal name. As a result, Bell decided to take the first couple of letters from the each of the two words of the brand name and turn them into the more catchy sounding ‘Be-Ro’.” – Taken from the Be-Ro website at http://www.be-ro.com/f_about.htm. The rock cakes are still delicious and the Be-Ro book is now into its 41st edition. You can buy it on Amazon.
Text inside the later (21st) edition. I have the earlier version somewhere, too.
WHOSE IS THE SCHOOL REPORT?
Still on ‘A’ in the Jubilee scrap-book (just as well the person concerned wanted to remain ‘a’nonymous) – a school report and (below) an Askrigg map . . .
Note the record-keeping: height 5′ 3″, weight 7st 8lbs. There was an outcry a few years ago when schools wanted to keep records of children’s weight. In the 1950s, however, it was routine. Obesity was hardly an issue because we were all on a relatively healthy, post-war diet of basic foods. Crisps – if you were lucky enough to get them, about once a fortnight – were Smith’s (I don’t remember any other brand), came with a little blue bag of salt and were often stale and soggy. There was very little snacking, nobody walked about the streets with a sandwich in one hand and a latte in a cardboard cup in the other: the 1950s equivalent of ‘latte’ was milky coffee, usually in a flask for a picnic. Lots of foods were still rationed, until well into the 50s.
Oddly, though we ate bread and dripping (pure fat), puddings and cakes, and pies and – as I recall – very little salad, somehow we stayed thin-ish. Nobody worried much about their weight and I’m pretty sure it was simply because we didn’t graze all day on whatever was to hand. So why were we weighed and measured at school so often? Presumably to make sure we were being fed properly, and maintaining a healthy weight to height ratio – and by healthy in those days, we meant fat enough, not thin enough.
The other interesting thing is how few words were used in summing up a child’s progress. But at least they were hand-written, not computer-generated from a standard database. But whose report is it? I’ve doctored it (I hope sufficiently) to protect the identity of an obviously steady and reliable pupil . . .
Next, under A (for Askrigg) - from the Marie Hartley and Joan Ingilby book, Yorkshire Village, comes this wonderful snapshot of what it was like in 1953, with a map and a key that need no explanation. It will revive memories for some, and provide a fascinating insight for those of use who came only recently, and those who are far too young to remember the year of the Coronation.
JUBILEE MEMORIES
Now that the special Jubilee issue of Oswald’s Outlook is published, with lots of memories from local people of how things were 60 years ago, it’s time to start putting on the blog all those things we didn’t have room for, and which – more to the point – can be illustrated. It’s going to be a mammoth task, because so much has been contributed. I aim to put up one item a day for the next month, if possible in alphabetical order. It will be a kind of ‘Jubilee scrap book’ like the Coronation one (above – adapted!) but online. Of course there’ll be other posts as events occur, and eventually I’ll put all the Jubilee stuff together. We’re in for a marathon read.
BETSY EVERETT
ANNE DEANS – GUIDES, SCHOOL, AND AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE
We start – below – with Anne Deans’ (then Bell) memories of the day she heard King Georg VI had died, and her family’s unforgettable start to that year, 1952. But first, how many people, or names, do you recognise in Anne’s Girl Guide phots? And which one is Anne? (She hasn’t said . . .)
An enigmatic message in Anne’s 1950s autograph album (we all had one in those days) . . .
Anne Deans
Nineteen-fifty-two started in a spectacular way for our family. We had the annual Sunday school party on January 2, which followed the usual pattern: tea at a long trestle table covered with a white cloth, egg and ham sandwiches, a large assortment of cakes, buns and biscuits and, finally, jelly. I cannot remember whether ice cream was served: it was still comparatively new, and in cardboard covered blocks. We drank tea, poured from a copper urn, which stood beside the sink in what is now Betsy’s kitchen (at Bottom Chapel). After we had eaten the games began and always included nuts in May, a-hunting we will go, stick-in-the bucket, stations, musical chairs, musical bumps, musical statues, Lucy Locket, pass the parcel and many more. Next came the presentation of prizes: all young people received a book as a reward for attending Sunday school. Before leaving we were all given special toffees. Read the rest of this entry
BRING OUT YOUR BUNTING AT GAYLE MILL
Samantha of Gayle Mill writes . . .
There has been a flurry of activity here at Gayle Mill. Coach group tours, commemorative bench under construction, traditional skills course bookings flooding in. It must be this lovely sun shine: it has woken up the world. My morning has been well spent preparing for our next Family Fun event on Saturday 2 June, 10am -12pm, entry £2 each.
Flyers are done and ready to be posted out, templates are made for the craft activity and the volunteer helpers have been drafted in. Just got to design the worksheet, stock the biscuit tin and we are ready to go. Each family fun event features a different craft activity for local children to try, inspired by a traditional skill which was once common place in the Dales. This months focus skill is crochet and knitting.
You might think that doesn’t sound very exciting, but what if I throw in the word ‘bunting’? In my book bunting makes every thing more exciting. During the morning event we will be making beautiful crocheted bunting – there is a complex and a simple version so people of all abilities can have a go. We will also be wowed by the knitting skills of Kate Trusson, a local lady who knits using a traditional Dales knitting stick tucked into her belt. The best know knitters of this style came from the village of Dent.
Children will explore the history of the mill in a free worksheet available on the day. And let’s not forget the very reason we have an extra long bank holiday weekend. The country is all set to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Looking back to the earliest years of the Queen’s reign we have been exploring the goings on at Gayle Mill in 1952. A display of our findings will provide the backdrop to our event. Hopefully bunting made by children here at the Mill will be hung in windows around the towns and villages of the Dales, providing a joyous backdrop to the celebrations for our Queen and commemorating the skilled workers of our heritage. But also serving as a reminder that these skills are still alive if we keep practising them, and pass them onto a new generation.
What an exciting world we live in eh? During my lifetime I have witnessed the birth of the internet (where wouldI be without Match.com!?!), the turn of a new millennium (never mind the bugs – it was a great excuse for a new party dress), the marriage of a prince (and a shift in fashion from strapless wedding dresses – at long last), the Diamond Jubilee of a Queen. I am happily proud to be British and celebrate a person’s great achievements that don’t involve kicking a football around a field).
Join us at Gayle Mill on Saturday 2 June to celebrate the best of our past and look forward to a bright future.
Best Wishes from Samantha at t’Mill
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WALKING BUS
Another story that nearly missed the blogging bus – though we did get a picture in the D&S it wasn’t the main one. Not surprising, really, as it was a very long picture with a lot of children in it. Nearly the whole school, in fact, joined the ‘bus’ – the last in Wensleydale – to celebrate its fourth birthday in April. Organiser Carolyn Teasdale says: “It’s free, it’s green, the children see a lot of interesting things on the way and they arrive at school much more alert than if they’d come by car.”
When Carolyn first asked about establishing a walking bus in 2008 she was told they had just missed out on getting a £2,000 local authority grant. “It was just as well: those who got a grant to pay for people to accompany the children had to stop once the cuts came and the grant money ran out. We didn’t need any money because we do it ourselves on a voluntary basis. I think that’s probably why we’re the only one left in the dale,” she added. Click on any of the pictures to enlarge . . .
ALL THE NEWS THAT’S FIT TO PRINT
Gone, but not forgotten: all the things that have happened in the last few weeks that I haven’t recorded on the blog. First up: Heather’s most recent coffee morning at Bainbridge Methodist church hall earlier this month, which raised £167 for St Oswald’s thanks to the effort, generosity and support of our local community. But thanks mainly to Heather’s seemingly boundless energy and commitment. Some lovely photos here – click on any to enlarge.
TIME FOR A QUIET MOMENT AMID THE HUBBUB
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- Take three girls – Helen, Kirsten and Heather
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- Jo and Heather
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- Linda and Dilys share a cuppa
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- What have we here?
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- Break for a cake
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- Table talk
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- What’s going on over there then?
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- Reading for pleasure
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- Working it out
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- Tickets please – Margaret and Tricia, with Brenda and John
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- Mary H, Margaret and Betsy
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- Time to chat and relax
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- Audrey and friends
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- A quiet read amid the hubbub
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- A happy trio
GOODBYE TO TWO POPULAR HEADS
Elaine Hopwood in the place she likes best – in the classroom with the children.
- Gill Woods with children outside Askrigg school.
Our two neighbouring villages of Askrigg and Bainbridge will say goodbye to the head teachers of their two lovely primary schools at the end of this term.
Elaine Hopwood, 58, retires in July from Bainbridge C of E primary school which she joined 17 years ago and where she has been head for seven. In 2010 she had a heart attack, and says that made her rethink her priorities. “This is a wonderful place to teach but I wanted to go while I still felt well and on top of the job. It is stressful because you can never really leave it behind and relax, and the demands of headship do impinge on the enjoyment of being in the class with the children, there’s no doubt about that. I’ve recovered well from my illness, but you don’t know what lies ahead, and I’m looking forward to starting a new phase of my life,” says Elaine, who lives in Keld with her husband, Christopher. She says the 14-mile journey to school over some of the highest, but most beautiful, scenery in the country is a joy in the summer but in the winter is treacherous.
“It’s normally half an hour but in the winter if I can’t get over the hills it can take me as long as two hours,” she says. In her 17 years she has seen the school roll drop to as low as 27, but now there are 55 children on the register from Bainbridge, Aysgarth and Marsett. She has what she describes as a “wonderful, supportive” staff of eight; four teachers, three teaching assistants and a school secretary, and spends at least half her time in the classroom. Elaine is looking forward to having more time for her hobbies which include lace-making, photography, particularly wildlife, and walking.“I may even do some teaching. Who knows? But at the moment I’m not making any decisions about that,” she says.
Less than two miles down the road, at Askrigg primary school, head teacher Gillian Woods, 55, is looking forward to a different challenge. After three years as head of the 34-pupil school, in September she will take on the headship of primary schools in Horton-in-Ribblesdale, Austwick and Clapham, with a total of around 140 children. Her appointment comes just as the authority is moving from a three-tier – first, middle and high schools – system to a two-tier one. “I shall be joining at a time of change for pupils, parents and staff so there will be a lot of consultation and quite a lot of reassurance needed,” says Gill.
Although times are uncertain for small rural schools, she is confident her leaving Askrigg is the right decision. Her husband, David, lost his engineering business in the recession last year and has been unable to find work. It is a familiar story for many families. “It’s a situation thousands of people are facing now, and it means you have to make difficult choices,” she says. The 36-mile daily round-trip from her home in Selside is an arduous one and, in the light of fuel price increases, expensive. Gill’s new schools are all within seven miles’ drive – one only a mile away.“I’ll be terribly sad to leave Askrigg but I am confident that I am leaving this lovely school in the safe hands of its staff and governors,” she says.
Gill fears that education is in danger of becoming too politicised and that there is a lot of misunderstanding about how children learn. “It’s not just a question of cramming their heads with facts and measuring progress by ticking boxes. Our role as teachers is to equip them for life, by giving them the tools to discover those facts for themselves,” she says. Through the nationwide Forest Schools programme, for example, they learn the core elements of the curriculum – maths, science and English – but in the context of exploring their environment.
“They also learn co-operation, leadership, decision-making and risk-taking. These are vital life skills that can’t be measured on a chart,” she adds.
IT’S ALL HAPPENING. . .
. . . in this sleepy, rural backwater. First, the final programme for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations has been agreed, and posters and flyers (above) designed by Will Daykin distributed. The highlight will be a fabulous bring-and-share lunch on the cobbles with a treasure hunt and 50s music. But there’s also a scarecrow competition, sports day, the beacon lighting on Ellerkin, family rounders, and gorgeous celebration cups for all children of 16 and under. And that’s just the extended weekend, from Friday to Tuesday. We then have songs of praise in church on the Wednesday, a wonderful art exhibition by Piers Browne, Joe Cornish and Kane Cunningham, a special celebratory issue of Oswald’s Outlook which should be out by Sunday 27 May, and in the not-too-distant future a whole round up of Jubilee-related memories and photographs will appear on the website. Oh yes – and on the day of the party we’ll be broadcasting to the nation, live from the cobbles. So, as they say, watch this space.
