EDUCATION.
A part of the profits of the ancient
endowment of parish lands held by the Bisley
feoffees was allotted to the payment of a school
wmaster. (fn. 94) Thomas Knight, the unlicensed schoolmaster recorded in 1616, was probably supported by
the charity. (fn. 95) In 1662 the feoffees agreed to pay £10
of their income to a schoolmaster (fn. 96) and between that
year and 1704 five masters were licensed to teach
the school at Bisley, usually called the free school. (fn. 97)
A building for use as a school-house and courthouse standing at the north-west corner of the
churchyard was conveyed to trustees by Thomas
Tayloe of Over Court in 1685. (fn. 98) In 1735 16 boys
were being taught reading, writing, and accounting
in the free school, (fn. 99) and about the same number
were taught in the early 19th century. In 1818 the
master was still receiving a salary of £10 (fn. 1) but from
the 1820s he was paid £13-15 out of the funds of
Ridler's charity, possibly because a part of the
endowment of that charity had been acquired with
an accumulation of the Bisley feoffees' funds. (fn. 2) From
1855 the free school boys were taught at a new
National school built at the north-west corner of the
churchyard, evidently on the site of the old free
school building. (fn. 3)
Another charity school, known as the Bisley
Blue Coat school, was founded by John Taylor,
clothier of Stroud, who by will dated 1732 left a
house and c. 30 a. of land in Upton St. Leonards to
support the education and clothing of 10 boys. (fn. 4)
By 1736 the trustees of the charity were employing
a schoolmaster at a salary of £8. Eight boys were
being taught in the 1770s, and in 1807 the master
was receiving £15 for teaching 15 boys. (fn. 5) In 1826,
when his salary had been reduced to £12 12s., the
same master taught the Blue Coat and the free
school and in 1839 he was also taking some private
pupils. The rental of the land belonging to the
charity was £25 in the mid 18th century but was
raised to £52 10s. in the early 19th. (fn. 6) From 1855 the
Blue Coat boys were taught at the National school. (fn. 7)
The charity continued to clothe the boys until the
early 20th century. (fn. 8) In 1815 the bulk of its annual
income, which then came from stock, the land
having been sold in 1863, was assigned to finance
scholarships for Bisley boys at the Marling School,
Stroud. (fn. 9)
Walter Ridler, clothier, by will dated 1699 left
£300 to the poor of Bisley and his niece Joan
Ridler by will dated 1714 left another £300. Mary
Ridler, Joan's sister, by will of 1715 charged an
estate at Haresfield with a rent of £30 to answer for
the interest on the two benefactions and apparently
directed the proceeds to an educational purpose; a
further £2 was later added to the rent-charge to
answer for a gift of £40 by Thomas Ridler. (fn. 10) About
1775 £220 accumulated from the charity together
with another £200, accumulations of either the
Ridlers' or the Bisley feoffees' charity, were invested in stock and in 1785 Ridler's charity had an
annual income of £49 13s. (fn. 11) From 1717 the funds of
the charity were used to support a number of small
schools in different parts of the parish. A total of
over 160 children were being taught in 1732, and in
1785 six dame schools were teaching 148 children.
In 1795 the charity was supporting dame schools,
whose teachers were each paid £7 a year, at Chalford,
Eastcombe, Oakridge, and Bisley, and Sunday
schools, whose teachers were paid £5 4s., at the
same places. (fn. 12) In 1811 there were weekly schools at
Oakridge Lynch, Avenis Green, Chalford Hill, and
Eastcombe, and Sunday schools at Bisley and
Chalford. By 1818, however, difficulties in finding
suitable teachers had led to the closure of all but one
of the weekly schools, and most of the resources of
the charity were applied to maintain a Sunday
school with c. 180 pupils, apparently that in
connection with the Church of England chapel at
Chalford. (fn. 13) From the late 1820s the charity, besides
paying the salary of the master of the free school,
helping to support Sunday schools at Chalford and
Bisley, and expending another part of its funds on
calico for the poor, also made contributions to the
various church day-schools started then; its
contribution of £5 to those schools in 1829 had been
increased to £21 by 1846. (fn. 14)
The schools towards which Ridler's charity
contributed in 1829 included one in Bisley village
where in 1839 40 girls were being taught to knit,
sew, and read; besides £3 from the charity, the
school was financed by pence and contributions
by the vicar. (fn. 15) The master of the boy's National
school built in 1855 received the whole or part of
his salary from Ridler's charity, (fn. 16) and the new
school was also supported in part by the Blue Coat
school trustees, who managed it with the clergy, and
the Bisley feoffees, who maintained the building;
further sums were raised by pence and voluntary
contributions. In 1871 the average attendance was
108, including both boys and girls, the old church
girls' school having presumably been absorbed. (fn. 17)
In 1910, as the Bisley with Lypiatt C. of E. school
for mixed juniors and infants, it had an average
attendance of 121, falling to 70 by 1936, (fn. 18) and in
1972, by which time it had been renamed Bisley
Bluecoat school, the attendance was 63. (fn. 19)
At Chalford there was a church day-school by
1829, and in 1839 it was teaching 50 boys and had an
income from pence and contributions by the clergy,
with £5 from Ridler's charity. (fn. 20) In 1842 a new
National school was built north of Chalford
church (fn. 21) and in 1847, when it applied for a government grant, it had an income from pence, voluntary
contributions, and a local subscription. (fn. 22) It was
enlarged in 1885 to accommodate 158 mixed
juniors and infants and it was again enlarged in
1905. (fn. 23) In 1910, known as the Chalford C. of E.
school, it had an average attendance of 149. The
average attendance fell to 86 by 1936 (fn. 24) and 49 by
1972. (fn. 25)
After the building of the new chapel for France
Meeting in 1819, the Old Vestry was remodelled
for use as a Sunday school and c. 1840 a day-school
for boys and girls was started there in association
with the Baptists of the Copse chapel. (fn. 26) In 1855 a
new schoolroom was built adjoining the chapel at
Chalford Hill and the school housed there was reestablished as a British school in 1866. It applied
for a grant in the latter year when, financed by
voluntary contributions and pence, it had an average
attendance of 70. A new building south of the chapel
was opened in 1874 with an attendance of 159. (fn. 27) A
school board formed in 1899 managed the school for
a few years (fn. 28) until the application of the 1902 Act,
under which it became the Chalford Hill Council
school. In 1910 it was teaching c. 230 mixed juniors
and infants and, after some falling off in attendance
in the 1920s, it regained its former size by 1936
when it had an average attendance of 251. (fn. 29) In 1972,
known as Chalford Hill County Primary school, it
had an attendance of 253. (fn. 30)
France Lynch had a church day-school attended
by 24 infants in 1847, (fn. 31) which in 1853 was being
partly supported by Ridler's charity. (fn. 32) A new
National school was built west of the church there
in 1868 and it was re-established in 1871 with an
income from voluntary contributions, pence, and £20
from an endowment, and with an average attendance
of 90 mixed juniors and infants. (fn. 33) It had an average
attendance of 85 in 1910, falling to 60 by 1922. (fn. 34) It
was closed in 1932 (fn. 35) and the children transferred to
Chalford Hill Council school. The building was
later used mainly for village social purposes. (fn. 36)
At Oakridge a church day-school had been
started by 1829 and from c. 1837 it was housed in
schoolrooms built adjoining the new church. In
1839 117 boys and girls were taught there by the
curate serving the church who, apart from a
contribution of £6 from Ridler's charity, supplied
the funds. Associated with it was a Sunday school
with an attendance of 158. (fn. 37) In 1860, when the dayschool had an attendance of only 33 and was
supported by pence, voluntary contributions, and
payments from a lectureship and the Bisley feoffees,
a grant was applied for, (fn. 38) and in 1872 the school was
transferred to a new building by the green north of
the church. (fn. 39) In 1885 Oakridge National school
had an average attendance of 90. (fn. 40) In 1910, as the
Oakridge Parochial school for mixed juniors and
infants, it had an average attendance of 93. The
average attendance was 81 in 1936 (fn. 41) and had fallen
to 33 by 1972. (fn. 42) A Wesleyan school was built at
Oakridge c. 1864 and had an average attendance of
40 in 1885; it was apparently closed when the
1902 Act came into operation. (fn. 43)
A church day-school had been started at Bussage
by 1831, and in 1839, when it was supported by the
vicar of Bisley and by a grant of £3 from Ridler's
charity, it was teaching 52 children, and there was
an associated Sunday school with an attendance of
122. (fn. 44) A new National school was opened south of
Bussage church in 1848, and in 1854, when it
applied for a grant, it was supported by pence,
voluntary contributions, and other sources, including
a payment from the Bisley feoffees. (fn. 45) It was enlarged in 1884, and in 1885 had an average attendance of 77. (fn. 46) In 1910, as the Bussage C. of E. school,
it had an average attendance of 54 and it maintained
its size in 1936. (fn. 47) In 1972 the attendance was
50. (fn. 48)
There were church day-schools for boys and girls
at Eastcombe by 1847, which were supported
partly by pence and had a total attendance of 48. (fn. 49) A
new National school was built near the south end of
the village in 1868 and had an average attendance of
55 in 1885. (fn. 50) In 1910, as the Eastcombe C. of E.
school, it was teaching c. 68 children. (fn. 51) It was
closed in 1918 (fn. 52) and the building became St.
Augustine's chapel of ease. The Baptist chapel at
Eastcombe supported Sunday and day-schools in
1851 (fn. 53) and a British school was built south of the
chapel in 1878. It had an average attendance of 61
in 1885. (fn. 54) It later became the Eastcombe Undenominational school and in 1910 had an average
attendance of 87 mixed juniors and infants, falling
to 40 by 1936. (fn. 55) In 1972, as the Eastcombe County
Primary school, it had an attendance of 62. (fn. 56)
A secondary school, called Manor School, was
opened at Eastcombe in 1962, rehousing the former
Brimscombe Secondary Modern school; (fn. 57) in 1972 it
had an attendance of c. 550. (fn. 58)