Llanfyllin and district
Victorian school days
  No blackboard, no maps, no sewing teacher !  
Drawing by
Rob Davies
 It took many years before some early schools had proper furniture and equipment. The School Board in charge of Hirnant School was told off by the School Inspector when he visited the school in 1876, and found it to be "in a most unsatisfactory state".
The school was full of church pews, and a sewing mistress was included among the missing items !
If a school got a bad report from the Inspector it could lose its annual grant of money, so the Board did improve matters in time for the next official inspection. The school was closed for a week to swap the pews for desks !
Drawing of pews and pulpit
4th December
1876
School diary entry
11th May
1877
 School diary entry
17th May
1877
 School diary entry
 

These entries in the school Log Book read -
4th December - "The building which ought to be fitted up as a school-room is still crammed with pews and pulpit. There is neither sewing Mistress, blackboard nor Maps".
11th May - "Received some New Maps and also a Blackboard".
17th May - "No school duties owing to Carpenters clearing out the Pews and fixing Desks".
24th May - "Recommenced school duties".
The school did get a sewing mistress, but the Inspector's report in 1878 mentioned something really important that was still missing. There is more about this on the next page...

The school with nowhere to go...

 
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