ABERDARE HISTORY

ABERDARE SCHOOL BOARD

February 21st. A Public Meeting was held at Tabernacle Congregational Chapel, Aberdare, presided over by the Rev Canon Jenkins the Vicar. The Rev D.M. Jenkins Minister of Tabernacle moved a Resolution to implement Foster's Education Act of 1870 and to form a Schools Board within the Parish. The Board was to consist of 9 members and it was hoped that they would be chosen without an election but 42 candidates offered themselves.

Election on March 30th and the following were successful: —

The new body met for the first time on Thursday April 20th 1871. The first Chairman, James Lewis, Plasdraw, was proposed by Thomas Price as the only Churchman on the Board. Price himself was Vice-Chairman.

Edward Gilbert Price was elected 1st Clerk to the School Board. This was the first of Triennially Elected Boards and they continued to function until taken over by the Education Committee of the new Aberdare Urban District Council on September 29th-30 1903.

CHIEF OFFICERS OF THE SCHOOL BOARD 1871–1903

The setting up of the School Board did not bring about the end of the Voluntary System or of the British School System immediately. Some continued under their own management for a number of years notably Comin 1877, Cwmaman 1882, and Aberaman 1892.

The first task of the Board was to hold a census. This revealed that the

Number of Children in the Parish of Aberdare between the ages of 3 and 5 was 2,271

Number of children in the Parish of Aberdare between the ages of 5 and 13 was 6,547

Total Child Population was 8,818

The Board reckoned that about 20% of that number would be absent either because of illness or, in the case of the older boys, employment or receiving private tuition. This left roughly 6,680 to be provided with accommodation and the existing accommodation when the Board took office was as follows: —

DEVELOPMENT OF EDUCATION AT ABERDARE
UNDER THE SCHOOL BOARD 1871-1903

An analysis of the increase in Educational Facilities during this period may be summarised in the following table of statistics:

By the end of this year several of the old British Schools had already been taken over by the new School Board, viz. those at Llwydcoed, Cwmdare, Abernant, Cwmbach and that held in the Vestry of Tabernacle in Duke Street Aberdare. The School at Hirwaun came under a Joint Board on which Aberdare, Penderyn and Rhigos were represented. The oldest British School Ysgol Comin was

taken over by the Board in 1876 on the 27th April.

Early in this year, arrangements were made to take over the British School at Ynyslwyd Chapel Vestry (Sunnybank St, Aberaman). The Vestry was rented for £25 per annum. By

A new school had been built in the Town in Clifton Street, (completed July 1875). Also new schools at Penywaun, Capcoch and Robertstown together with new buildings at Abernant and Cwmbach to replace the old chapel vestries hitherto occupied there.

ITEMS FROM THE BYE-LAWS OF ABERDARE SCHOOL BOARD PASSED AT THE FIRST MEETING 1872

a. No child was required to attend if he/she lived more than 1 mile from nearest school.

b Fees:
Attendance at Boys School 4d per week
Attendance at Girls School 3d per week
Infants and all under 7 years 2d per week.

By this year, the Aberdare School Board controlled 12 schools, 24 Departments and accommodation for 4,402 children. A Schools Inspector had been appointed—J.W. Hodges. His report of July 1876 includes the following details regarding the teaching staff:—

20 Certificated Masters and Mistresses
1 Assistant Master
9 Assistant Mistresses
1 Mistress at Robertstown
1 Mistress at Abernant
44 Pupil Teachers
29 Candidates and Monitors

A Total of 104 according to the report. (There was a discrepancy of 1. The actual total was 105)

During the Term of Office of the 3rd School Board, there were two important events:

1. The school at Tabernacle Vestry was closed on 31st January of this year and the pupils were transferred to the Town Board Schools at Clifton St., which accommodated 1,000.

2. A site at Blaengwawr was purchased for £423 for the purpose of building a new school. (In May of 1880 the pupils were transferred to it from Ynyslwyd Chapel Vestry)

THE QUALITY OF THE TEACHING

During this period, the percentage of passes in the 3Rs throughout England and Wales was 79.5. During the same period, the percentage of passes in Aberdare was 92.9, (Board Schools).

The pay of a Headmaster was between £120 and £150 according to the size of the school and that of a Headmistress £70-£80.

In this year under arrangements initiated by the School Board an agreement was reached with the Llanwonno Board to have Joint Control over the Dyffryn and Cwmpennar Colliery Schools which had been taken over by the P.D. Company in June 1884. The Cwmaman British Schools also became Board Schools. These developments were reflected in an increase in accommodation.
1880 4,863 places
1884 6.670 places

In this year by Order of the G.C.C. a part of the Parish of Aberdare was transferred to the parish of Llanwonno and the Aberdare School Board ceased supervision of the Dyffryn and Cwmpennar Schools.

Census held by the Aberdare School Board

Those children who were not attending school included those who over 11 years had Labour Certificates, those who were receiving private tuition and those ill. Those children who were not attending school included those who over 11 years had Labour Certificates, those who were receiving private tuition and those ill.

31st October: The last of the Old British Schools at Aberaman was handed over to the School Board. The managers agreed to accept £200 for books etc.

A ¼-acre of land near Oaklands was bought from the P.D. Co. for a new Infants School

this was called Aman and opened on June 2nd 1894.

The new school at Cwmdare was opened on August 12th as also a New Infants Department at Park School (Comin). During the last years of the School Board additional accommodation was provided by the following:—

New School at Cwmaman built on land bought from Cwmaman Coal Co.

New Mixed School opened at Aman, September 1st.

New Mixed School and Infants at Ynyslwyd, March 1st.

Cost of Education

During the period of the School Board the average cost of teaching each child showed a progressive increase:

At the turn of the century, a headmaster’s salary was £220 per annum.

Teaching Staff During the Term of the School Board

Statistics of Pupils During the Term of the Aberdare School Board

During the early years there was a slightly higher average attendance at those schools which were not under the control of the School Board. This was attributed by the Inspector to the fact that they were less rigorous in their exacting of the School Fees.

There was a general drop in attendance figures caused by a local trade depression due to the closure of the Tin Works and Collieries. This latter resulting in a movement of population to the Rhondda that was now being fully opened. Whereas the population of Aberdare (Old Area) in 1871 was 37,704, the population of the New Area in 1891 was only 38,431.

Conditions of trade affected school attendance.

Average attendance at Board Schools alone was 5,629. During that year, there was a disastrous strike that lasted from April till September during which the weather was phenomenally fine. Many Schools provided soup kitchens and the children attended punctually and regularly.

During this period, the average attendance at the Board Schools had increased by nearly 1,000 due to the abolition of School Fees in 1892 except for the Higher Grade Schools.

Higher Grade Schools
There had been agitation for Higher Grade Schools in Aberdare by the local Chamber of Trade as far back as the 1880s. The first Higher Grade School was opened on

August 5th as a Branch of the Clifton Street School. The First Headmaster was J.E. Morgan, and accommodation was for 220 pupils. The number on the books was 146 and the average attendance 110 in the first year. During the 90s, it was not particularly flourishing attendance being 76 in 1900.

The Early Twentieth Century
Attendance at schools in Aberdare increased steadily during the first years of the present century.

1900:—7,153   1901:—7,562   1902:—7,889   1903:—8,353

The increase was due to two main causes:
1 The School Leaving Act of 1900 that empowered the School Boards to raise the school leaving age from 13 to 14 years.
2 Prohibition of Child Labour Underground Act of 1901 (Mines Act). This prohibited the employment of any children under 13 years of age in or about a colliery.

Attendance at school was enforced by School Attendance Officers of whom there were originally 2 under the School Board. A Third was appointed after the abolition of school fees.

Throughout the period, many incorrigible children were sent periodically to the Truant School at Swansea.

Evening Continuation Classes (Night School)
These were designed for older boys and girls who had been forced to abandon their education at an early age.

An attempt was made to set up an Aberdare Scientific Society, Sec R. J. Jones. Cardiff Library Ms 4-204.

Dan Isaac Davies held evening classes for boys at Ysgol Comin

Average attendance 1864: 34
Average attendance 1865: 71

Aberdare School Board opened its own “night school” at Clifton Street under Mr. Neville and, at Cwmbach, under Mr. Keast. The result is encouraging particularly at Clifton Street. Enrolment figures at Clifton St. in the First year:

In the course of the next 20 years, Night Schools were opened at the Town School, Park School, Abergwawr, Cwmaman and Cwmbach Schools and during the Winter Session of 1896–97, the total number of “Night School” Departments was 19.

(A point of interest here is that it was in the Diamond Jubilee Year 1897 that the ‘New Writing Pens’, i.e. Fountain Pens were introduced.)

By this year, there was a distinct falling off in "night school" attendance - possibly due to the long strike of 1898. This decline continued through the last years of the School Board.

But this had dwindled to 410 by the end of the Session.