Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Having written this

http://www.chforum.info/php/viewtopic.p ... 21#p143121

in another thread, it occurred to me to wonder if we had a thread on staff houses.

Originally, I think, apart from the bachelor accommodation in the boarding houses, there were attached houses for the married housemasters of PrepA, PrepB, MaB, ThA, PeB and PeA, and 'married quarters' in houses opposite Maine, Barnes, Middleton, Thornton and Peele. (Most of these latter were occupied in my day by fairly important masters.) Then there were the houses (to the same design as the ones in the Avenue) in King Edward Road. There was also the bachelor house (White's) with I think three flats (considered desirable), and most upmarket of all, Stammerham (occupied by George Newberry, head of Geography, and his wife almost the whole time I was there).
Living off-campus was rather unusual (in my day, MacNutt lived in Broadbridge Heath, Reggie Dean lived in Horsham, and Gad Malins had an estate house on Five Mile Ash Road).

The first major additions were the houses (six in all) in East Gun and West Gun Copse roads, dating from c. 1960 (mostly occupied at first by married junior housemasters, a category unthought-of in 1902), then a further bachelor residence built next to the infirmary (c. 1962), and then the staff flats in the boarding-house extensions built in 1964.

N.T. (Bogey) Fryer of Coleridge B had a house next to the Heads house, if memory serves.

Apart from that, I have no memory of who on staff lived where.

This picture (just pre-WWII?) is as I remember it:

The vast majority of teaching staff live on site these days.

King Edward’s Close was built off from King Edward’s Road in the 60s, there are 2 additional houses in West Gun Copse, as well as another 3 around the Infirmary Drive. Lamb A and B have Lego versions of the housemaster houses on the back asphalt and one wing of the Sicker is flats...

Great Plum wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:02 pm The vast majority of teaching staff live on site these days.

King Edward’s Close was built off from King Edward’s Road in the 60s, there are 2 additional houses in West Gun Copse, as well as another 3 around the Infirmary Drive. Lamb A and B have Lego versions of the housemaster houses on the back asphalt and one wing of the Sicker is flats...

Just out of interest, is this staff accomodation 'Grace and Favour', or are costs deducted from salary ??

I was the last member of staff to live in a room next to the lower dorm and to have a dayroom study. This was for three years in Maine B from 1981-4. It was unreasonable as it was basically like being on duty 24/7, seven days a week. I also did six and a third sporting activities a week which was totally unreasonable for a first year teacher. AND there was no reduction in time-table so that you could learn on the job. But I suppose the Headmaster, Derek Baker, did let me know at appointment what I was in for!

J.R. wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:08 pmJust out of interest, is this staff accomodation 'Grace and Favour', or are costs deducted from salary ??

Not so if your accommodation was away from the boarding houses. I can't remember what the exact rules were but if you were a "live-in" tutor who was provided the accommodation for "the better performance of your duty" then there were some advantages. I can't remember exactly what.

Another "advantage" of working at CH was that you didn't have time away from the pupils during term to spend your salary! That's how I built up my house purchase deposit. During one half term in Maine B, before I bought a car, I literally did not go outside the ring fence for six weeks!

And tax rules might have changed since I left in 2001.

Golfer wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:51 pm

J.R. wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:08 pmJust out of interest, is this staff accomodation 'Grace and Favour', or are costs deducted from salary ??

Another "advantage" of working at CH was that you didn't have time away from the pupils during term to spend your salary! That's how I built up my house purchase deposit. During one half term in Maine B, before I bought a car, I literally did not go outside the ring fence for six weeks!

Have you still got the Triumph Dolomite Sprint?

Golfer wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:45 pm I was the last member of staff to live in a room next to the lower dorm and to have a dayroom study. This was for three years in Maine B from 1981-4. It was unreasonable as it was basically like being on duty 24/7, seven days a week. I also did six and a third sporting activities a week which was totally unreasonable for a first year teacher. AND there was no reduction in time-table so that you could learn on the job. But I suppose the Headmaster, Derek Baker, did let me know at appointment what I was in for!

Sounds positively lavish compared to the accomodation you must have had as a steel worker in West Germany?

Golfer wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:45 pm I was the last member of staff to live in a room next to the lower dorm and to have a dayroom study. This was for three years in Maine B from 1981-4. It was unreasonable as it was basically like being on duty 24/7, seven days a week. I also did six and a third sporting activities a week which was totally unreasonable for a first year teacher. AND there was no reduction in time-table so that you could learn on the job. But I suppose the Headmaster, Derek Baker, did let me know at appointment what I was in for!

I’m sure Clive Kemp had three rooms on different floors in the boarding house (Maine) as his ‘1902 flat’

I just loved Clive Kemp. He was most amazing mentor and person during 3 years in Maine B, It was so sad that he died. He was so fit as well. One of my most cherished Maine B achievements was to take them from last to first in the steeple chase in 1984. I did this by racing individual boys 3 times a day around the steeple chase course with the promise of a mars bar for an improved performance. It was amazing for my own fitness as 1984 was one of my two best best golf seasons. However at the end of that 1984 Easter Term - having beaten the winner of the junior steeple chase the week before he won (Aly Muir) - I foolishly challenged Clive Kemp to a race around the course, It was quite close but I was never going to beat him even though he was years older than me!

Great Plum wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 9:19 pm [I’m sure Clive Kemp had three rooms on different floors in the boarding house (Maine) as his ‘1902 flat’

No-one had 3 rooms.
Clive had the centre hall study which had an important connecting door between him and the boarding house.

Good point - I think he used the first floor room for the shoes!

Ali Muir, RIP, another gone far too early