Happy Days

I was there in the 70's. The echoing of Frank Gasston's footsteps along the green lino'd corridor at 7am, the dorm door squeaking open and a cheery shout of 'all alive?' is still with me 40 years on. It was cold in the winter at times despite the huge radiators. Had a lot of good times there and exploring the wonderful countryside in the hot summer of '76 is also an enduring memory. The house had a very eerie feel to it, especially if, like me, had a few sleepwalking episodes! I remember actually walking through the churchyard in pyjamas during the night and feeling I was dreaming it but the soil in my bed in the morning proved otherwise. Hope to visit the site before it goes completely.

I like your reflection. I am from Barbados and did my Enrolled Nurse Training at Lord Mayor Treloar Hospital March 1968-July 1970. There were many nurses from the Caribbean. The Matron was Matron Robinson from South Africa. Her name is the only name I remember . Yes it was cold in the winter as everything was almost open Plan with the folding doors allowing beds to be pushed out in the summer. Real long wards and corridors. I must have enjoyed my time there , because I returned in 1977 to gain my Diploma in Orthopaedic Nursing. The re is now a housing estate and a health centre. Feb 2017

I remember Treloars with great affection. It transformed my life and gave me opportunities to learn and grow and make of my life the best it could be. The college operated on principles very similar to those found in a public-school environment, with 4 or 6 bed dormitories, early morning wake-up to the ringing of hand bells, house captains, prefects, morning parade, communal meal times and evening prayers. Discipline was strict but generally seen to be fair and the concept of self-help and support for others was ever present. The ethos focussed on a determination to ensure that physical disability or early difficulties would not compromise the education of any student.
It was a sobering experience to see many of the students who shared the college with the 70 boys, who like me had haemophilia. Cases included those with polio, muscular dystrophy, brittle bone, cerebral palsy, severe asthma and a number with juvenile arthritis, whose physical handicap ranged from mild to severe.
Treloars engender a sense of self-worth and independence but the housemasters and many of the staff never wasted an opportunity to remind those who would listen, that it was "a hard world out there" and their disability would make it even harder. It may sound harsh to those on the outside and particularly in this age of “political correctness” it would be completely unacceptable, but we were often told that we had no right to expect that we should get any special treatment just because we had a problem.
Students were always reminded that this place offered a great opportunity to learn skills that would help them compete with their able-bodied fellows and it was their responsibility to make the most of it.
While the surroundings were extremely beneficial, I look back now and realize that it was the staff who made the most difference.
There are many I remember who made a difference to me.
Mr. Mayhew who sparked my interest in history,
Mr. Arthen who taught science,
Mr. Dick who made a valiant attempt to teach me French,
Dr. Rea and Colonel Howe, whose persistence helped me understand maths,
But perhaps most of all, I remember Mr. Bachelor who taught us the basics of electronics that would serve me well to get and hold down a variety of different careers within the electronics industry. Perhaps most of all I thank him for his humour and willingness to tell us it was a hard world and prepared us for it.