Banstead Village

Yes went to school there. Lovely school. It closed and we all went to Merland Rise instead. Shame it closed.

My first few school days were at St Mary's. I'm not sure whether it was late 1948 or early 1949, but after a few days there I went to Banstead Village School infants.

Where is the Brighton Road in relation to this picture?

I can’t be sure about this perspective, Michael, but my guess is that the gables in the photograph faced Brighton Road. That's how I remember it, anyway, but all these decades later, I could be wrong.

As we know, there were two church schools in Burgh Heath - St Mary's, and the Methodist infants and junior school. They were located north and south of the Reigate Road; I'm assuming that St Mary's was north of Reigate Road, on the opposite (west) side of Brighton Road to the church.

St Mary's Church School was on the west side of the Brighton Road roughly opposite St Mary's Church which is on the east side. I have checked on Open Street Map and agree it's where Chips Folly is now as stated above.

However I am having great difficulty in working out from which position the photograph was taken. Where or what is the road/track with the sharp bend and also what house is that? One thing that rarely changes much over time is the line (and inclines) of a road. The OS map of 1914 maps.nls.uk/view/101436931 and 1897 maps.nls.uk/view/101436934 show a very similar layout including the orientation of the school, and I cannot relate the picture to what is on the maps. The 1914 one shows the church but it is not on the 1897 one. Also of interest is a 1956 map scale 1:2500 maps.nls.uk/view/103028352

Frustratingly I cannot remember enough detail about how the building looked even though I would have travelled by it many times including walking.

What is the source of the picture?

Another point to remember is that before the Brighton Road was made into a dual carriageway (in about 1960) it was in a cutting which, on the west side, started at the school and continued northwards tapering lower nearer Tattenham Way. The cutting is marked by the usual symbols on the old OS maps. The entrance to "Cold Blow" was through the side of the cutting.

That picture is taken from the common behind. Geese were always there as a little shop call Bertha's I if my memory serves me right. I went to Burgh Heath Methodist school along with my elder and younger sisters Linda and Christina.

Mrs Marshall lived in the house that used to be behind the willows of the pond. It had a slate roof with CAFE painted on the roof.

There were stables and the Sheepshearers pub on the same side. Surrey Yeoman was on opposite side of the road. There was a barbers and a shop called the Corn Store which my mother worked at.

The pond was a major carp venue but unfortunately when the new houses went up the owners had the fishing stopped and the fish removed. Such a shame that they did that considering that they didn't buy the pond. A very sore point with many many locals. Cast into the Sun by Chris Yates, a famous angler even mentioned it. ALL the ponds on the common are linked by underground springs and rivers.

Response from LNW: Thank you for your interesting points Stephen. May I ask your source of the information about springs and rivers as I have not been able to confirm this, and two other Banstead History members who tend to know about these things have never heard of this before and think it is somewhat unlikely, but are happy to be proved wrong!

As I mentioned above I went to that school for a few days when I first started school. I didn't like it and then after about a week went to Banstead Village School even though that was much further away and bus ride or walk.

If that picture is taken from the common then what is the building on the left and where would be the Brighton Road? As Peter says I think those large gable ends must be facing the Brighton Road and that house on the left of the photo must also be on the west of the Brighton Road, but I still have difficulty orientating it in my brain. If so the picture would be taken looking south west. It's also worth comparing the buildings on the OS map of the time maps.nls.uk/view/101436931

The store with the chickens and bantams running around next to the Brighton and geese on the common at the back (Deates?), was on the south side of the school ie would have been on the right of the picture if taken from the common.

The main pond did have carp in it and is labelled Fish Pond on the 1914 map, but the smaller pond to the west of the Sheepshearers used to contain many newts and hence not fish The ponds are marked on the map and Lonesome ponds were very shaded and covered with Duckweed. Burgh Heath lies on a thin sandy cap (hence why it is, or was heathy), overlying chalk. The chalk shows at Tattenham Way which is at a lower level. I think it doubtful that any of of the ponds were linked by underground streams.

Not only was there Burgh Heath Corn Stores and a barbers in the parade along the A240/A241 as it was, but also a shoe mender's, but I can't remember what else was in that row of shops. I had my hair cut in the barbers for many years. Boys sat on a wooden plank laid across the arms to have their hair cut. The barbers also sold things you didn't ask about!
The shoe menders sold Blakey's shoe protector's that still seem to be in production today. Many of us used to buy these and put on the soles of our shoes. This made the shoes easily slide on hard surfaces such as the playground. Two other boys could then pull us around or you could simply just slide for fun.

There was a furniture store on the corner next to Mr Carter's Barber shop. I had Saturday job in the Corn Stores.

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