In May 1940, as the international situation worsened, the Chief Education Officer sent a circular to schools, encouraging all teachers to volunteer for evacuation duty. Those unable to do so were requested to ‘write personal letters’ explaining why they were unable to offer their services.

On the 26^th August 1940 the realities of war reached Acocks Green. During a German air raid several houses in Wildfell Road were demolished and others rendered others unsafe. None of the Dolphin Lane children were injured during the attack but parents in the area were seriously concerned about their children’s future welfare. It was not surprising therefore, that –

From the beginning of September 1940 air raid warnings, while the school was in session, occurred at regular intervals and lessons were repeatedly interrupted as children huddled in the shelters. The already uncertain situation worsened on the night of Friday 22^nd November when a concentrated German raid on the city caused considerable damage.

The Education Committee decided it was time for action -

‘The Head Teacher was summoned by wireless to attend a meeting in the Technical School, Suffolk Street, at 10.30 am on Sunday 24^th November.’

Alderman Byng Kenrick and Dr. P. Innes, the Chief Education Officer, addressed the meeting. The main points of information given were -

That same afternoon, events took a turn for the worse at Dolphin Lane. Delayed action bombs had been dropped near school and many of the nearby houses had already been evacuated. As it was in the danger zone the school could not be used.

Arrangements were hurriedly made with Rev. Kelly of St. Mary’s Church, to allow the children and their parents to assemble at Bishop Westcott’s Church Hall, in Greenwood Avenue until the school could be reopened.

At a meeting held in the Hall on the afternoon of Monday 25^th November, the parents were informed of the Education Authority’s latest decision –

Evacuated families from Hartfield Crescent School dressed for a party

Not wishing to wait any longer to send their children to safety, or to split up their families, some parents chose to send their younger children with older siblings attending Hartfield Crescent School. Among these were Brenda Nicolle, aged 9. (4^th left front row) and her sister Eunice, aged 12, (7^th left second row with newspaper ‘fancy’ hat). They left for their destination, Loughborough, on the 27^th November the day before Dolphin Lane was finally declared safe and the children could return to their classrooms, dressed and ready for immediate evacuation.

On the 29^th November came the news that many anxious parents had been waiting for - children at the school would be leaving for evacuation the very next morning, Saturday 30th November.

At 8.30am one hundred and twenty children gathered at the school and travelled by bus to Castle Bromwich Railway Station, en route to East Retford, Nottinghamshire. Eighty-three of the children were from the Junior Department, twenty were from the Infant Department, eight were from Hartfield Crescent Senior Boys and nine were from Hartfield Crescent Senior Girls. The party was made up of mixed ages as members of individual families opted to travel together. There was also a separate group of approximately eighty children from the Infants Department, under the supervision of Miss Hood. In this combined party, leaving for a safer rural location, were Syd Bardell, Dorothy and June Powell, Joan and Evelyn Kempson, the Henbury family – Arthur, Brian, Alvis and Sheila and Hilda Penson.

When the Dolphin Lane children arrived at Castle Bromwich, they joined those from a number of other schools making up one large evacuation party. The overall total, approximately nine hundred, was made up of eight hundred children and a hundred adults, i.e. teachers and helpers.

The schools that making up the overall evacuation party were –

Dolphin Lane Junior, Dolphin Lane Infant, Alum Rock Junior, Acocks Green Senior Mixed, Acocks Green Junior, Acocks Green Infant, Hall Green Junior & Infant Stirchley Street Junior, St. Michael’s R.C., Nansen Road Junior & Infant, Nansen Road Senior Girls, Moseley C. of E., and Ingleton Road Junior.

The Dolphin Lane School party was supervised by -

Head Teacher - Mr. George A. Sutton; Chief Assistant - Mr. V. E. Perry
Assistants - Miss E. M. Jessop; Mrs G. Holder; Mrs N. Kent; Miss C. Folland;
Miss K. Callow; Miss F. A. Appleton; and Miss G. Bailey.
Helper - Miss M. Holder

Miss A. Davies, the Chief Assistant Mistress, remained at the school to answer enquiries and to maintain contact between parents and their children.

Mr Sutton reported -

A substantial programme of organisation was necessary to ensure this temporary re-settlement of children was efficiently carried out. New Ration Cards and Identity Cards had to be provided, all children had to have a thorough medical and school places had to be allocated. In addition to these necessities, a scheme had to be established with Birmingham for the supply of clothing, boot repairs etc. and also a system set up for dealing with children who were unhappy in their ‘billets’.

After the first few days teachers and helpers who were no longer needed at Retford returned to Birmingham.

On 5^th December, just days after the first evacuation party had left, Miss Davies was called to a meeting at which she was informed … ‘names could be taken for a further evacuation of children to take place on Tuesday 10^th December 1940, to the rural areas under the Nottinghamshire County Council.’

Arrangements were made for Mr Sutton to meet Miss Callow, the teacher in charge of the nineteen children from Dolphin Lane and the ten pupils from Hartfield Crescent Senior Girls, near Retford. He wanted the new arrivals to join the children already at Retford but Dr MacMahon, the Birmingham Schools’ Adviser in over-all charge of this latest group of evacuees, insisted they went on to the rural areas of North and South Leverton as planned.

On the night of 11^th/12^th December considerable damage was caused to Dolphin Lane School when an A.A. shell struck the roof. In spite of this Mr Sutton decided to remain in Retford believing that the need to improve communications between Birmingham and the Education Authority at Retford, particularly on money matters affecting the welfare of the evacuated children and their teachers, was more important.

The summary of a meeting between Mr Sutton and Dr MacMahon and a representative of Retford’s Education Office, during which there was a review of staffing, the payment of teachers’ salaries, classes, stock, housing, the health of the children, general supervision and arrangements for Christmas, was taken by them to Birmingham for discussion with a representative of the Education Authority. Mr Sutton was surprised that the Birmingham officer receiving the report was far more concerned about the damage to the school than he was about the evacuated children and

Many of the concerns, he was informed, were outside his province although he believed

He reluctantly accepted he should remain in Birmingham but the arrival of the next teachers’ salary warrants, including those for the teachers on evacuation duty, gave him a reason to return to Retford. As ‘Head Teachers, or teachers-in-charge, were authorised to ‘negotiate’ the salary warrants Mr Sutton decided to cash them and take them to Retford ‘to hand over the amounts, which the young teachers especially, were no doubt anxious to receive. They had gone away hurriedly and board, lodging etc. needed attention.’

At a meeting with the Evacuation Office at Retford arrangements were made for his teachers to be given their salaries. They

Teachers from other schools were not as fortunate and there was some dissatisfaction that their Head Teachers had not made similar provision.

Before leaving Retford on that occasion, Mr Sutton handed over his duties to the Head Teacher of Acocks Green Senior Mixed School and was able to inform him that the Mayor of Retford ‘was likely to provide 1/3d per head for Birmingham children’ towards their Christmas festivities. It was left to the teachers of the various schools remaining on evacuation duty, to make arrangements among themselves for their holidays at Christmas and the New Year.

It was not too long before yet another evacuation party was bound for Retford and once again Mr Sutton was ‘given the job of teacher i/c of all schools.’ On March 3^rd 1941 approximately four hundred children left Castle Bromwich, but of these only seven were children from Dolphin Lane School. The ‘journey was without any untoward event’ and as Mr Perry, Miss Folland, Miss Callow, Mrs Kent and Miss Bailey were still on duty with the remainder of the group that left the school on the November 30^th, no further input was needed from Mr Sutton.

Although by mid August 1941 ‘numbers of children have returned from evacuation’, moving children to safer areas had not yet come to an end. On 21^st November the school was notified a further evacuation was planned for the first week of December, the destination being Bargoed, in South Wales. Only six children from Dolphin Lane were in the party of sixty-two children brought together from twenty different schools. The whole group, again entrusted to the supervision of Mr Sutton, went by bus to Tyseley Station and then by rail to their destination.

‘Everyone arrived safely and all the children were in their billets by nightfall.’

The teachers, however, were not so fortunate as no provision had been made for them. Luckily, a local doctor came to their rescue and provided some of them with hospitality while other suitable accommodation was organised.

During 1942 the teachers on evacuation duty at Retford, Leverton and Bargoed returned to the school when their services were no longer required. Likewise there was a steady drift of children back from their temporary homes in the country to their own families in Acocks Green.

The memories of the past-pupils, evacuated as children, range from total loathing to fun and happiness.

‘We went on a coach to the station. The train had a blue streamlined engine. We took our gas masks and a case with clothes in it. When we got there we sat on benches in a hall waiting to be chosen – a bit like a cattle market. Mr and Mrs Fletcher chose me, with another boy, but he soon went to live somewhere else. It was a cold winter. We were often chased and ‘duffed’ up by the local children. I was not happy there.’ Sydney Bardell

Mr and Mrs Leeming chose my sister and me. They made us take all our clothes off and sit under a ray lamp. We hated it. We were only there for a week. Dorothy Bromage (nee Powell)

‘I was evacuated to relatives in Worcestershire. Evacuation for my sister and I was easier than for many children as we were able to be placed with relatives’ John Bird

‘I remember being shepherded into a school - house where we were allocated accommodation. Luckily I was with my brother and my sisters were next door. We had to fend very much for ourselves as our widow woman, Mrs Hall, we were led to believe, was a lady of the night.’ Brian Henbury

‘My sister and me were evacuated to Retford. I remember us waiting outside the school with labels pinned to our coats and a few possessions. We were taken to Acocks Green Rail Station. On arriving at Retford we were dropped off at St. Saviour’s Church Hall to await families who would take us in. Because we would not be parted we had to wait until someone would take us both. Eventually a young boy came in and said his auntie Annie would take us. Mrs Palmer’s husband was working nights at the Gas Works so we did not meet him until the next day. He was very nice and made us welcome. …… We had a happy time in Retford apart from the time Evelyn fell into the river while playing ….’ Joan Sparrow (nee Kempson)

Introduction – Goodbye Green Fields and Country Lanes

Getting Started

Buildings – Meeting the Changing Needs

The School Staff – Comings and Goings

A Broader Education – Talks, Festivals and Visits

Concerts and Performances – A Chance to Show Off

Christmas Celebrations

Royal Occasions – Visits and Celebration Holidays

Physical Activities – Athletics, P.T. and Games

Fund Raising – Helping Others and Supporting Ourselves

Medical Matters – The Doctor, The Dentist and the ‘Nit’ Nurse

Accidents and Misfortunes – Cuts, Bruises and Even Worse

Transgressions – Naughty, Naughty!!

The Air Raid Shelter Saga – Keeping the Children Safe

Evacuation – From Birmingham to the Countryside and Back

Appendix 1 Birmingham Educational Districts & School Lists

Appendix 2 New Pupils’ Previous Named Schools

Appendix 3 Sketch Map of the Local Roads Housing Dolphin Lane Pupils

Appendix 4 Memories – Dennis Simons