Delamere By Sid Grant

A Memory of Delamere.

The Jewish Fresh Air Home and School was founded in 1921 by Miss Margaret Langdon, MBE, MA (1890-1980) and located at Blakemere Lane, Delamere near Norley, in the beautiful Cheshire countryside.  My time spent there was from age 7 to 9 April 1933 to 8th April 1935.   
The school was created for delicate Jewish children. They typically suffered from maladies such as malnutrition, nervous debility and enuresis. The age of the children ranged from 6 to 12 years.
Miss Langdon, as the secretary, conducted her work from an office at 149 Cheetham Hill Road, Manchester, centrally located in the area of heaviest Jewish population.  Miss Helena Landau (1892-1979) was the head of the school, assisted by Miss Ada Reubens. The head of the nursing staff was a Miss Dunston. The handyman and caretaker was called Albert.
On arrival each child was allocated a numbered locker in the changing room, a peg in the washroom and a locker in the classroom for personal items.
The daily time table was
  7.15am Rise
  8.00am   Breakfast
  8.30am early duties (weather recording, care of the poultry, tending plants and flowers, preparation of classrooms, bed making, and boot cleaning)
  9.00am   Prayers and Bible stories
  9.20am Lessons
  10.10am Lunch and play
  10.25am Lessons
  12 to 2.45pm Dinner, followed by rest
  2.45pm Lessons or ramble
  4.30pm Play time
  5.00pm   Tea, followed by play
  6.00pm   Prayers, bath and bed
The above schedule would be tailored to the health of the child concerned and the time of the year.
The food was excellent. We drank mostly milk, cocoa and water and we were allowed one sweet or piece of chocolate from a plate passed around the dining table after dinner. Obviously the big pieces went first and you were unlucky to be at the tail end! Once a week, we would line up to choose a portion of sweets such as a liquorice stick or a toffee ball.  A rare treat during the summer time would be an ice-cream cornet.
The boys and girls slept in two separate dormitories with a row of beds down each side, and two or more chamber pots were positioned on one side for use during the night. We were each responsible for a small garden plot. They were arranged in rows at the entrance to the school grounds. The centrepiece was a sunflower, surrounded by a variety of other flowers.
Albert (the caretaker/handy man) also acted as a barber and the boys lined up for haircuts outside the potting shed. On completion he would rub some evil-smelling paraffin oil in the scalp. I am certain he was not responsible for the girl’s hair.
The Star System measured our performance. Each week a star would be stuck alongside our name on a chart displayed in the hall.
The colour of the star defined how well we had behaved and carried out our duties that period.
Every month we would write a letter home giving any news of our daily activities and requesting items of clothing as prompted by our teacher. The letter was mailed in a stamped addressed envelope left by our parents on a previous visiting day. On a couple of occasions during my stay, one or more boys would run away, with the intention of going home, but they never got further than the railway station about a mile or so along the road. The stationmaster would then phone the school and a member of staff would collect them.
About once a month we would all have to be examined by a Dr.Ratner in the isolation building. The Head of Nursing Staff, Miss Dunston always wore her uniform, which included a sister’s triangular shaped cap. I recall that she had a pet dog, a black spaniel named "Pero" who was her constant outdoor companion.
The older children took the responsibility for the Scout movement and they planned and implemented many activities, including a Sports Day, May Day celebrations, competitive games and our periodic Scouts' evening. These activities were a source of much enjoyment and happiness to all and would eventually help so much in character building.
I would always look forward to the frequent walks in Delamere Forest. Many of us would collect birds' feathers. A Blue Jay feather was considered a prize find, and we also would look out for “conkers” (chestnuts) in the autumn.
Every Saturday morning we attended a Shabbot service in the hall, after which we were given a cup of cocoa and a cream biscuit.
At the festival of Purim all the children were given a silver 3d coin. A teacher would take us to a large wooden hut, serving as a tuck shop, at the side of Hatchmere Lake, which was just a few minutes walk from the school.
During the Passover period we would all return home. I assume this served the double purpose of our being home for a family-oriented Jewish festival as well as relieving the staff of the chore of changing the eating and cooking utensils.
The large wooden frame of a Succa was permanently erected in the valley behind the school buildings. On Succot, it would be covered with branches and foliage. Various fruits would be hung on the inside as decoration, and it was greatly admired on visiting day by our parents.
Once a year we would travel by coach to Beaston Castle and spend the day amongst the ruins and have a picnic. Our other annual treat was a visit to Chester when we would walk along the Roman wall.
There were never any films shown. But occasionally, on a dark winter’s evening, we would be shown some lanternslides in the hall. At no time did we listen to radio programs. In 1934, an extension speaker was placed on the wall in the hall to relay music.
Each month, on a Sunday, our parents would visit us. They would board coaches outside the Waterloo Hotel on Waterloo Road, Hightown, Manchester and arrive at about 3pm. The coaches parked on the road at the front of the school. There was little passing traffic in those days. It was unlikely that any of the visiting families would have owned a motorcar.
Only two persons were allowed to visit each child, and theoretically no children were allowed. I can remember my parents bringing my sister, Sheila, who was at the time under two years old. Visitors would gather in the hall and make a required contribution towards the upkeep of their child. Food was not provided for the parents. While we were eating, my parents would eat at Mrs Blain’s, a cottage tearoom a few minutes walk away although many parents brought food with them. Weather permitting we would spend our time outside with our parents in the grounds of the school, after showing them our classroom work. Otherwise we would play and talk in the hall. One of the visitors Elizabeth Bergmans mother (Mrs Gertrude Bergman nee Shine) would play the piano and sing too us, her favourite song being "Eli Eli". I remember a visitor named Jack, an older brother of Harold Wallace once singing very well while accompanied by Mrs Bergman. "Mars Bars" and "Kit Kat", among other confectionery, were first introduced in that era.  My Mum and Dad would always bring a bar, which I ate outside, being careful not to be noticed by any members of the staff. When our parents left, we would all stand together near the front to wave them goodbye. Even though we were well looked after and happy, many of the younger children would cry to go back home with them, but they soon got over their emotions. Nevertheless, we still missed our parents.
For a year or two after leaving I attended a Chanucah party for "Delamerites" which was held in the basement hall of a Synagogue on Cheetham Hill Road Manchester.
Here are the names of some of my contemporary Delamerites:
Joe Singer, Alec Simons, Ethel Miller, Monty Black, Harry Miller, Gerald Backner, Monty Levine, Henry Patoff, Harry Hersh, Estelle Bergman, Sam Stockman, Harry Jacobs, Basil Herwald, Maurice Spindler, Sonia Austin,
Eunice Askins, Rhona Pollock, Dennis Simms, Helen Becker and Harold Wallis.
A girl, Inger Laufer, a refugee age about 12, stayed for a short time. I presume she left to live with a foster family.

---

---