Erdington Boys School Slade Road School

[Morturn]

The photographer and plays-director who taught English was Mr Hayden-Jones. He commanded respect. He later became Deputy Head Teacher. He took all the School's group and individual photos, all in black & white and well produced.

Yes, thats it Hayden-Jones. I think he had a dark room at the school

 

[oldjoe]

That is correct CassB, i was chosen to help one year, helping with the lighting and props, why me, no idea.

 

[EssexBrum]

I was a pupil at Erdington Boys Secondary Modern from 1968 To 1973. I remember a number of teachers Mr Smith maths teacher and my form teacher for my first year. I remember Mr Holt art teacher, Mr Jones English teacher and organiser of all the school plays of which I took part in various productions. Mr Frost the PE teacher who gave me the nickname Nose after a mishap during one gym session. He was obsessed with basketball. Mr Evan’s Science teacher. Mr Jennings Woodwork Teacher. They all had their own forms of punishments for boys who misbehaved. My mother worked at the school as a dinner lady. I used to go every Easter on the schools canal barge trips earning a certificate of canalman ship. I obtained a number of CSE results and was due back at school to complete my O & A levels. My mother received a letter from the school asking where I was as I did not return to school to complete these exams. I had decided to join the Royal Navy

 

[John L]

There were three Jones’s if I remember correctly. Trevor Jones taught English to first years. Very smart looking older guy whose copperplate handwriting was a work of art.

Harrington Jones who, I was never sure what he taught. He seemed to organise all the school plays and was quite a good photographer.

There was a Jones, a Welsh guy who taught history and managed to make it as boring as watching paint dry.

I have "Trefor" as he pronounced it, to thank for sorting out my handwriting. He also taught my father, so our handwriting was remarkably similar. I remember he used graph paper, to make sure that the proportions of all our letters, were exactly right.

I was a pupil at Erdington Boys Secondary Modern from 1968 To 1973. I remember a number of teachers Mr Smith maths teacher and my form teacher for my first year. I remember Mr Holt art teacher, Mr Jones English teacher and organiser of all the school plays of which I took part in various productions. Mr Frost the PE teacher who gave me the nickname Nose after a mishap during one gym session. He was obsessed with basketball. Mr Evan’s Science teacher. Mr Jennings Woodwork Teacher. They all had their own forms of punishments for boys who misbehaved. My mother worked at the school as a dinner lady. I used to go every Easter on the schools canal barge trips earning a certificate of canalman ship. I obtained a number of CSE results and was due back at school to complete my O & A levels. My mother received a letter from the school asking where I was as I did not return to school to complete these exams. I had decided to join the Royal Navy

I well recall Mr Smith bringing older children in to receive the slipper in front of us (I suspect that we may have been in the same class for a year). The number depended on which day he had called you in for the punishment (1 for Monday, 2 for Tuesday and so on), I recall the look on one lad's face when he was told on a Monday to come back to see him on Friday!

We also had a Geography teacher, who taught on the second floor and used to take a run up from the back of the classroom to the front, to hit his victim with a wooden slipper that he kept for such occasions. I was almost one of his victims for talking at the back of the class, but I pled my innocence, as on this occasion he was 100% wrong, it really wasn't me. He refused to listen, or to believe me, so I grabbed his precious wooden slipper and threw it out of the window onto a roof. He was livid and threatened to send me to the headmaster for the cane, if I didn't take his punishment. I told him that I would take the option of going for the cane instead. When asked by the head, why I had been sent to see him, I gave him the whole story. He listened intently and then told me that I was free to go. I think this was the first he had heard of the wooden slipper and there was no cane for me, I always appreciated having been given a fair hearing by him.

 

[CassB]

On our daily walk home from Erdington Boys, me and my mates used to meander around the streets before ending up playing in the field/waste ground behind Hanks' Motor Bike shop on the Slade Road. Hanks claimed the field as his own and he, his sons and their two Alsatian dogs used to shout and bark at us, from the side of the shop, to get the hell out. so we sheepishly made our way out, going onto "The Drive", away from the shop. However, we were undeterred and kept going back day-after-day to roll down the hill and swing from our make-shift rope swings we constructed, except when the dogs were in the field.
One day we were heading up towards the field past the shop-front on the Slade Road, when we saw one of my mates leaving the area with his hand shredded and dripping with blood. An horriffic sight. He had been attacked by the Alsations while waiting for us in Hanks' field. We never returned to the field after that horror show.

 

[John L]

On our daily walk home from Erdington Boys, me and my mates used to meander around the streets before ending up playing in the field/waste ground behind Hanks' Motor Bike shop on the Slade Road. Hanks claimed the field as his own and he, his sons and their two Alsatian dogs used to shout and bark at us, from the side of the shop, to get the hell out. so we sheepishly made our way out, going onto "The Drive", away from the shop. However, we were undeterred and kept going back day-after-day to roll down the hill and swing from our make-shift rope swings we constructed, except when the dogs were in the field.
One day we were heading up towards the field past the shop-front on the Slade Road, when we saw one of my mates leaving the area with his hand shredded and dripping with blood. An horriffic sight. He had been attacked by the Alsations while waiting for us in Hanks' field. We never returned to the field after that horror show.

Didn't he use that land to run his bikes? I'm sure I heard them, but I never ventured in, which now seems a very good decision.

 

[CassB]

Didn't he use that land to run his bikes? I'm sure I heard them, but I never ventured in, which now seems a very good decision.

They probably did. The rear of 247 Slade Road, at the bottom of the hill, was certainly large enough for them to ride motor bikes on. However, I never saw them ride bikes on the field.
Looking at google maps, it seems the flat part has been built on and the field has, what looks like, allotments.

 

[Smudger]

They probably did. The rear of 247 Slade Road, at the bottom of the hill, was certainly large enough for them to ride motor bikes on. However, I never saw them ride bikes on the field.
Looking at google maps, it seems the flat part has been built on and the field has, what looks like, allotments.

Got into a bit of a fight outside Hanks` front. I wasn`t doing too well when a voice shouted “ will you keep the noise down, old people trying to sleep “ Thankfully that did the trick & we stopped fighting. I then strolled over the road for a bag of chips. If i remember rightly Hanks did a lot of sidecar racing?

 

[CassB]

Got into a bit of a fight outside Hanks` front. I wasn`t doing too well when a voice shouted “ will you keep the noise down, old people trying to sleep “ Thankfully that did the trick & we stopped fighting. I then strolled over the road for a bag of chips. If i remember rightly Hanks did a lot of sidecar racing?

Just Googled Fred Hanks Motor Bike shop. It seems that it closed its doors for the final time in 2018 after 60 years of trading.

 

[Astoness]

Just Googled Fred Hanks Motor Bike shop. It seems that it closed its doors for the final time in 2018 after 60 years of trading.

yes sadly it did

 

[Morturn]

I remember the Hanks Bros sidecar outfit at Mallory Park. BSA A65. There was quite a nasty crash once involving one of the Hanks bros