No.2 Ifield Childhood

Number 2: Ifield Childhood.

I am not Crawley born and bred. We moved to Ifield village in 1949, when I was just 5 years old.
My parents probably chose Crawley for its good access to London and the chance to buy a cheap house - my grandparents lent them the £1000 they needed.  My Dad needed the train to London to continue his university studies. He had not been able to afford university before the war. The Labour government, voted in in 1945 offered grants so that people could study.
So, in 1949 we moved to Crawley to live in a house with no bathroom and with just a university grant for my parents and three children to live on.
I didn't know how hard it must have been.
My world centred on the village street, the village green - also known as the common, the village school, and the paradise of fields to play in which surrounded us.
We lived in Ifield. We went to Crawley, I suppose, once a week. Mostly we cycled there; sometimes we went by bus......two came through the village. There was the 426 that went from Horley to Dormansland. Dormansland sounded like foreign parts to me - not part of my world. The other bus was the 852, which went through Ifield Wood to Horsham. We did sometimes go to Horsham.

The 426 arrives in The Square, outside The George Hotel.

But back to Ifield.

I lived in a semi detached house almost opposite the village shop.

The village street in 1921.

It had hardly changed thirty years later when I was there. I can look along and name the people who lived there.

This postcard is a gem.....the messages on the back can be very interesting.

Clearly the sender was very annoyed about the village shop!

But thinking about, I have to wonder if the village shop sold much bread in my day. There were two bakers delivering to the village. Smiley faced Bert delivered Co-op bread to our house.

The village shop changed very little over the years, though I do believe that the window facing Rectory Lane had been bricked up by the 1950s.

When we first arrived the shop was owned by The Howletts.

The Bradens took over in the 1950s. They had 2 daughters, Catherine and Margaret I played with them a lot.We played skipping, ball games, hand stands and made up little plays. An added attraction to me was their television. We didn't have one. As I grew older I loved to be there in the early evening to watch Criss Cross Quiz and other such programmes.

Later the Capsticks took over. Most of their children were a little older than me. And by that time I had my own social life based on school friends and interests. So, I didn't know them so well.

The shop is still a handy corner shop and I still have family living in the street.

My school was the Ifield village school.

The school was open for children aged 5 - to 15.

At 5 I joined Miss Richard's class. She was lovely. We learned lots in a relaxed atmosphere and we knew we were loved.

On Fridays she gave out prizes - not just for accademic learning. Oh I did love those magic painting books.

It is sad to say that Miss Richards had never qualified as a teacher and later she was asked to qualify or leave. She had an elderly mother to care for and couldn't give time to qualifications and she was lost to us.

I was a fast learner and moved up to Mrs Kershaw's class - she lived up Bonnetts Lane.

Mrs Jackson was the headmistress. She took me for sewing.....I was not good at sewing. My work was always in a muddle and she had to sort out my threads. I am sure she was kindly.....but it didn't feel so to me.

Mrs Roberts later took over as head mistress. Mrs Roberts became my class teacher. That was when we had inkwells and scratchy pens.......lots of blots over my work I am afraid.

And Mr Hall came to teach at the school - a tall young man; we hadn't had men before! He took over the class that I was in.

He was a great teacher.

It came to an end in March 1955. The New Town was already getting established and a new school was opened to take pupils from the Ifield and Crawley church schools. We left our wonderful country house with the huge and fascinating grounds to be excited by a new building and new ways at St Margaret's. I thought the children from the town were so sophisticated!

We spent a lot of time on Ifield Green - mainly at the weekends, when cricket matches were being played.

My parents could stroll and be sociable with neighbours.

My passion for photography started young.

Here I am taking a snapshot of my brothers. The cricketers play.....many stirred early admiration and interest for me!

The old Ifield steam mill can be seen behind the cricket pavilion.

The fields were more suitable playing places for children. We were surrounded by them. We would go along Tweed Lane to cross the River Mole and out to Ifield Wood.  We could go along The Quarter mile Field and play in The Spinney. Or we could go down the footpath to the fields on the way to County Oak.

I played with my brothers and neighbours and life felt good as we explored the  countryside and human behaviour.

This is me, aged 7 in the "red indian" field in Ifield Wood. We called it that because of the long grass and reeds through which we could stalk each other.

The church didn't feature large in my life - nor the pubs. My parents were neither church or pub goers.

I attended Sunday school at the church for a short while. But later we children were sent to the Quaker Meeting House Sunday School instead. I was married at the church. 

St Margaret's Hall was a feature of childhood. I'll deal with that place another time.