a 'phill d inspired' goodbye to allerton high school

[kierentc]

inspired in that i've taken some snaps and put them on flickr. this is where the resemblance ends though as my pictures aren't that great. the last time i took pictures you took the film out of the back and took it down to boots. and i couldn't get on with my husband's camera. thank heavens for the rotate and crop function...anyhoo, allerton high is due to be 'dozered in september and a brand spanking new building is nearly complete on the same site. so i went down to my old stomping ground and took some pictures for prosterity. tbh the place was pretty shabby and run down, and although the structure is largely the same, some parts were unrecognisable with 'new' (as in nearly 20 years old) extensions. but i got some good shots and also some of the scrapbooks they had on display to show some pictures from yesteryear...a bit of history...the school was founded in 1901 as chapel allerton high school, a sister school to leeds girls high. this is why the uniform is green to this day. it was housed in a row of four terrace houses which still stand today a few hundred yards up from chapel allerton primary . the building was cramped and unsuitable and a move was mooted in 1930 but not completed until 1939. the school was described by an ex pupil as 'paradise at last!' and it some ways it was...only 600 girls attended, it had a hall, gym etc and was in the middle of the country (as alwoodley was then as the surrounding estates were yet to be built)the school classrooms and offices were built round a central assembly hall with a grassed quadrangle to either side. a dining and gym wing were to the left and right. the only thing that detracted from the 30s symmetry were the two towers on the king lane side. it was said these were added at the last minute for staff to do air raid obs from during the forthcoming war. whether this is true or not is anyone's guess, but it's a good storyin 1944 it became a girls grammar, then in the early seventies it became a 13-18 comprehensive and boys were admitted. this was also when the uniform changed from 'leeds girls' olive green to bottle green. the roll was about 900 now, and one of the quads was filled in with a single story extension housing a lecture theatre and library. a science wing was tagged onto the gym building and a sports hall builti attended in the late 80s and the year after i left it became a 11-18 school again with a roll of around 11-1200. further extensions were built; both quads were filled in with double story extensions, a sixth form block was built in front on the gym building, and the cloakrooms were walled in and used as classrooms. every inch of space was utilised and its been like that for getting on for 20 years now. so while it's sad to see the old building go it is well overdue, it was shabby when i left, and little remains today of the 'luxury school' of the 30s and 40si appreciate the pictures may be a little dull if you didn't go to allerton but there's some nice ones of 30s architecture, some interesting historical stuff and even a 'celeb spot' in the 'history' set.i'm struggling to get the link to work but it seems ok if you cut and paste it. let me know if it doesn't and i'll have a play around. i'm a flickr novice and this is my first go. feedback is welcome...as long as you're kind http://www.flickr.com/photos/kierentc/(if this has posted twice, do forgive me. it said i'd posted but i can't see it...)    (edited to add working url )    

[chameleon]

Looks like there is a problem with your link Kieren - could you try it again for us?

[kierentc]

does it not work if you cut and paste it?what does the error say? and any clues on how to sort it, lol

[kierentc]

ok, now its not showing the link at all <sobs in frustration>all that work for nothing <wails>i hate flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/kierentc/has this worked?    

[chameleon]

kierentc wrote: ok, now its not showing the like at all <sobs in frustration>all that work for nothing <wails>i hate flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/kierentc/has this worked? Yehhh! works great now kieran - just shows, practice and all that....Know a couple of people who will enjoy looking at these, well done    

[oldleedsman]

Thanks for these. I know a couple of old girls who would like to see them.

[Phill_d]

LOL thanks for the ode to phill.d kieren. I'll check the pics out. Nice one!

[leedslily]

Great pictures kieren! My old school too, but I was there from 1974-1979, so it all looks very different from how I remember it - except for those staircases and the wooden floors!My year was the first 'proper' comprehensive one - we stayed an extra couple of years at Fir Tree, which changed from a primary/junior school to a middle school, then moved on to Allerton at 13 - a very scary change!In the meantime lots of kids from Chapeltown and beyond had been moved to Allerton after Scott Hall High became a middle school and they were too old to be there - understandably, they weren't best pleased about being bussed out of their own patch to a school full of posh girls! And a lot of the Allerton teachers had never had to cope with 'rougher' girls, never mind boys, so it was all a bit anarchic, to say the least. That explains the first head boy - he was one of a few who'd moved there from another school. (Incidentally, I knew him outside school too - he's now a teacher himself!)Joking apart, I think that was a difficult time for the school really - some staff were desperately trying to cling to its grammar school past in the face of the need to cater for kids of a much wider ability and interest range - so we ended up with a weird mix of the ancient and modern for most of my time there.And the sight of that corridor to the gym still strikes terror into my heart!

[eastendpk]

Thanks for the great pictures. Brought back many memories. I too was a pupil at Allerton between 1986 - 1989.    

[kierentc]

hi...just shamelessly bouncing as i've added some 'going going gone' snaps of the old building.bye bye forever, old school