VILLAGE COLLEGE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 44, 15 November 1937, Page 7

VILLAGE COLLEGE

A New Development in England

LONDON, Oct. 16. A new development in village lif®ji offering a lead to the whole country-j side, made its promising start at Lin-j fcon (Cambs.) It is rural England 's| tnost up-to-date cultural and social cen-j tre, the pioneer village college, which j has been built ^t a cost of £22,000 on> the outskirts of this drowsy old-time • market centre hy the Cambridge ; County Council, aided by the Carnegiej Trust. j Eleven villagers with a total popula- ■ tion of 5000 will share it as a community centre of secondary and adult education, recreationand social life, Thirteen Acres of Playing Fields. The day classes start off with a full attendance of 300 boys and girls, aged 11 to 15. These are drawn from every section of ruTal society, with farmworkers' and smallholders ' children predominating. Forty come. from the. land settlement estate, Abington (Cambs.), the children of ex-miner settlers from Durham. There are woodwork and engineeringf Workshops, music rooms, gyxnnasium, ranteen, kitchens for cookery lessons, and 13 acres of playing fields and gardens. A mid-day meal cooked on the premises is served daily in a central dining Jiall for 2Jd per head, and the canteen is open in the evening for those attending the farmers' club, musical society, university extension lectures, the women 's keep-fit club, the men's physical culture class, and folk-dancing clubs —all held at the college. Special bus services are run. from the villagers to the college. There are a free library, medical services room (which can be Used as an Infant and maternity clinic), chemical laboratories, lecture halls — and all with first-class equipment. Here is a dream come true, the vision that inspired Mr Henry Morris, director of education for the county of Cam.brideeshire. •,