Photo Gallery
Eastcourt - Infants' School / Church Hall
The current, once neglected, Church Hall has now been restored to something like its former glory and renamed the Parish Centre. The building as we see it today began life as the Infants School which was opened in 1855 and remained in use as such until well into the 20th century. With the teaching consolidated into the neighbouring National School at about the time of WW2, the building became the responsibility of the parish church and has been used as a Church Hall ever since (although it was rented back to the Education Department after WW2 to accommodation overflow classes). The near porch is an added feature as is the appalling infill between the two porches. The latter was personally built in the 1960s by the then incumbent and, like so much from that decade, has not stood the test of time.
Returning to the dating of the building, its opening in 1855 is well documented and the 1843 Tithe Award map is indistinct however there is a date stone set into the building's rear wall showing "P.N. 1806". Kelly's Directory of 1875 state that both schools are "newly built" so where did the date stone come from?. It comes from the original Charity School that was opened in 1806 and was created by adding to the thatched cottage next door to the Church Hall. This building was smaller than the Infants School which replaced it but they stand on the same plot and investigations reveal that the rear wall at least is from the original 1806 structure.
"P.N. probably refers to Philip Neale who was a prominent villager at that time.
The Infants School (now the Church Hall / Parish Centre) from the Church Green prior to restoration
Date stone at the rear of the Church Hall