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Summary

Location of a school established in 1872 in memory of the donor's late wife; the buildings were demolished in the later 20th century but another school built with the same name

Monument Type(s):

• SCHOOL (Late 19th century to Mid 20th century - 1872 AD (pre) to 1962 AD (pre))
• TEACHERS HOUSE (Early 20th century to Late 20th century - 1920 AD? to 1975 AD?)
• LIBRARY (Mid 20th century to Late 20th century - 1963 AD? to 1975 AD?)

Full Description

The First Edition Ordnance Survey mapping of 1872-78 <1> marks a rectangular building on Burghfield Common as an Infant School. It is is sited on the north side of a crossroads of the Reading Road; the northwest joining road is School Lane. On the Second Epoch OS of 1899 <2> a detached Mission Room is depicted close by, within the same rectangle of land as the school. The school building had been extended to the rear by 1936 <3> and another perpendicular block added to the east, which is likely to have been the master's house mentioned in the Victoria County History of 1923 <4>.

Information from the website of Mrs Bland's Infant and Nursery School in 2011 <5> indicates that this was the original location of a school built in the 19th century on land given by Horatio Bland and named in honour of his wife. A new school (retaining the Bland's name) was built in 1962 in Jordan's Lane; this was probably known as Bland's Junior and Infant School <6>, but in 1966 the Junior School moved to a new site on Clayhill Road and became known as Garland School <7>.

Further information from Reading Museum <8> notes that Horatio Bland was a wealthy merchant and trader, who in 1847 married Emily Cherry, the oldest daughter of the Rector of Burghfield. The Blands' first home was Culverlands in Burghfield and they later commissioned the building of Hillfields. Horatio Bland created a purpose-built museum in an outbuilding at Hillfields for artefacts collected from his global travels.

In 1868 whilst on an expedition to the Holy Land, Emily died and was buried in Jerusalem. Horatio founded Mrs Bland's School in memory of his wife in 1872. In 1874 he built a new museum next to the school for his growing collection. After his death the artefacts were transferred to Reading Museum by his nephew Thomas Garland, and the Burghfield museum became a Parish Room. Both the school and former Parish Room were demolished, but this appears to have been sometime after the construction of the new schools as the 5th Epoch OS map of 1970 <9> names the former school as a library. The parish room at this time is labelled 'St Mary's Church'.

Sheltered accommodation called Blands Court was built on the site of the old school in 1975, though subsequently the block was remodelled into bedsits, purpose built flats, bungalows and a warden's house <10>.

Sources and further reading

Related Monuments

Associated Excavations and Fieldwork

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