Delamere Forest School - August 2017

[mookster]

Delamere Forest School is an almost century old institution near Manchester. It was set up in 1921 by Margaret Langdon, a prominent Jewish philanthropist, as a 'Fresh Air Home & School for Delicate Jewish Children' located deep in the Cheshire countryside. By the 1960s, as the need for that type of school fell out of favour it became a school dedicated to boarding and educating Jewish children with learning difficulties.

The school closed in 2011 after the old buildings became financially unsustainable, and the organisation moved into a wing of a specially constructed independent school where it stays to this day as a charitable trust.

I don't know what it was about this place but I really struggled to get any decent photos - a lot of the rooms were on the small side and sadly the original school assembly hall had been split up into smaller rooms at some stage, plus the synagogue was more just an empty room with a couple of framed photos on the wall and dedications engraved on the windows. It's a strange rabbit warren of a school, with separate buildings connected by wooden outdoor corridors which reminded me very much of the ones at West Park, albeit it on a much smaller scale. Metal thieves and local idiot kids have done their work leaving parts of it in a very messy state too. Despite that it's a pretty good explore and one I'm surprised hasn't had more attention from explorers.

Thanks for looking, more photos can be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/mookie427/albums/72157683830728412​

 

[krela]

I wonder what delicate Jewish child is meant to mean?

 

[mookster]

I wonder what delicate Jewish child is meant to mean?

I'm guessing it was a euphemistic 1920s way of saying 'special needs', as it was always set up to cater for children with learning difficulties. It was the only Jewish school of it's type outside of London.

 

[krela]

Yeah that was my thought too, neurotic disorders as they would have been known then.

 

[Mearing]

In the 1940s in my experience the term delicate children was fairly comprehensive and included children who had suffered various ailments including polio, ricketts, tubercolosis. asthma etc. Also a variety of other disabilities.This did include children with what are now termed " learning disabilities " some of these with Downes syndrome.The local "special school" (as it was then termed) near where I then lived in Reading catered for all the above categories attempting to restore them where possible to "robust" as opposed to "delicate health".

 

[prettyvacant71]

You still managed some interesting finds in there like the symbolic candles and kids art work, it needed explorin to find out, nice one Mookster

 

[smiler]

From your pics it seems you had a relaxed nose about, I liked it Mook, Thanks

 

[Potter]

It's a bit odd how the ceiling tiles have been stacked up in the corner.
Looks a good place.