Cruelty Of Chamberlayne Road Boys School

I was a pupil at Nightingale infants School when it opened in 1954, after spending my first school year at Chamberlayne Road Boys School Eastleigh. I return to Chamberlayne Road Boys School for my Junior School years. The headmaster’s name was Mr B L Shotton although I think he was replaced by one Varco Bayliss before I left. I remember a teacher called Mr Davis who would punish boys who miss behaved by slapping them with a ruler on the back of the legs (all boys wore short in those days).There was always some rivalry at the school between the boys going to Toynbee Road Secondary School and those, like me, going to North End Secondary Modern in Leigh Road. The playground was all tarmac and surrounded by a high brick wall and one particular corner was fought for by the two rival groups. Those in possession were the winners. The school had a tall chimney and a tower whilst I was there, however the tower was subsequently pulled down. The school had no indoor toilets, they were in the south west of the tarmac playground. The urinals had no roof but the cubicles as far as I can remember were covered. There was also a covered shelter in the playground with steel cross members supporting the pitch roof. The boys, including me, would often swing Tarzan fashion across these bars. On the east side of the school there was a small fence from which boys would view the girls in their playground of the Chamberlayne Road Girls (secondary) school.

Hi Everybody,
I am disappointed to the response from the pupils of chamberlayne road Boys' school where so much emotional abuse must have happened. I remember to this day a spinster teacher named Mrs Russell who came from the left field and beat our legs if we could not answer a question. This sadistic woman needs to be exposed.

note: if you cannot answer the particular question at 7 years old then you have been badly taught, and the teacher requires modesty.

I remember the poor boy whom stole money from the teacher as I was at the school at the time. My father was a teacher at the school and this is what happened. The teacher noticed money was missing from her handbag which she left by her desk. So the teachers set a trap to find out whom the culprit was. It was a boy who had a reputation for repeated misbehaviours. His mother was contacted and she completely exasperated ask the headmaster Mr Bayliss to give him a public thrashing in front of the school - she was there as a witness. My poor unfortunate fatther was a teacher there and he was one of the staff members instructed to hold the boy across the horse - and my father was totally horrified and thoroughly upset,. The headmaster at the time came from a Royal Naval background and was not liked by other teaching staff. I was only a small boy at the tinme and sat in the audience and witnessd this event and had to comfort my father when he got home as he was so upset

Thank you for this information. I am so shocked that I cannot give due justice to a decent reply at the moment.

Hello David, how are you? I just stumbled on this website after my younger brother reminded me of a schoolyard photo.
Hope you
re well. I live in Brisbane Australia.

I remember the public humiliation and the boy's name. Indelibly imprinted in my memory. I have a reasonable copy of the whole school photo. Your dad is in it. A lovely man. Mrs Lillywhite, Mr Shootton, Mr Day, Miss Russell etc

Actually, I think her name was Miss Russell, There was a Mrs Russel too but she was married. I had Miss Russell as my form teacher at one point, She was very kind to me.

I remember this well. Bayliss was an animal who nowadays would be allowed nowhere near a school

Hi, Graham Meech here, how are you? We lived 100 yards apart on Chamberlayne Road, I seem to remember that under Mr Shotton our old school was a happy place, but as soon as Bayliss arrived boy did it change?

I was at the school from 1941 to 1948 and Mr Shotten was the headmaster. I don't remember any cruelty under him. He was a strict disciplinarian and did use the cane on occasions.
My memories are singing "Nick Nack, Paddy Wack" in the shelter when the siren sounded and not coming out of the shelter until the "All Clear".
I remember that all of us, in my class at least, could all recite our times tables, we could all read and write - perhaps the teaching method then wasn't that bad.
I remember my best friend Mo (Maurice Home-pronounced Hume)
I remember all my lady teachers being kind, so I obviously have very different memories to many of those above.
Peter Salkeld