How do you produce a detailed school history of a single small village school, Great Barton in Suffolk, when key records such as log books are not available for the period before 1925? This book by a former head teacher of the school manages it well.
By looking at censuses, newspaper reports, oral testimony and the like it puts the school into a broader context and one of the most fascinating parts is the descriptions of families and their circumstances such as criminal records, emigration or wartime experiences. The biographies of the various people connected with the school is particularly prominent and the book ends with detailed life stories of the various headteachers.
The book also places the school in the wider context of the village and surrounding area. The role of the local landowner is extremely significant – they paid for the school and their influence was successful, long and usually benevolent at least into the early 20th century (firstly the Bunbury family who actually owned the school and then the Riley Smiths of John Smith Brewery fame). Great Barton (Bertuna being the Saxon name for the village) is near Bury St Edmunds and it becomes apparent that the school is not isolated but teachers often link with those of neighbouring schools. The influence of the teacher unions and other associations and links between other schools in the area probes areas not often covered in school histories.
The author is certainly on top of the national events affecting education and the role of local factors such as the actions of the County Council. There are plenty of instances of linking not just the well known acts but dozens of lesser-known educational directives to the development of the school. Being an educational insider, the grasp of the various educational changes is really impressive. She
brings the story right up to date and her own headship is incorporated into the narrative. Some of the recent material is more akin to a school newsletter but is no less interesting.
What is apparent is both how much has changed and yet how small rural schools have faced similar problems over the centuries. Teachers of even a generation or so ago would scratch their heads at Ofsted, local financial management, academies, special needs co-ordinators and the influence of governors. Those from earlier times would barely recognise a community without the patriarchal influence, the status accorded to women teachers, the inability to inflict corporal punishment (although here there is only one caning detected for careless work) and the facilities provided in the new building post the 1970s. Yet they would largely relate to struggles with pupil numbers (numbers have fluctuated from 217 down to 52 before rising again), attendance problems, bureaucracy and the pressure to achieve results as well as the dedication of the many teachers who often fulfilled a pastoral as well as pedagogic role and were invariably respected by many in the village. One former respected teacher of the school committed suicide supposedly fearing the imminent inspection.
One has to admire the grasp by the author of what made the school and community tick over a long period of time. Most school histories tend to steer clear of more recent times, partly because of the absence of sources but Sue Spiller is never short of information. Oral history supplements her own knowledge. All in all this is a very impressive and all-embracing account of a village school in its wider context. Occasionally the amount of detail is rather overwhelming and there is some repetition but overall this is a really useful account of how schools functioned with their priorities and concerns and how these change and developed over time. The reviewer previously knew nothing about the Suffolk village of Great Barton. After reading this book, he certainly has a strong awareness of this village and its people. The way Great Barton evolved with the wider political, social, cultural and economic changes is well brought out in this book.
Tim Lomas
Tim Lomas is the current chair of BALH and a former education inspector and adviser.
BERTUNA'S CHILDREN 