Heritage Trail 20 - The Factory School

'You will soon reach two of the finest buildings in Saltaire - the School on the left and the Institute on the right'   Sir Titus Salt chose to place the two Factory Schools - one for boys and one for girls - in pride of place in the middle of the village.  The Factory Act 1844 had required that children (8-13) should not be employed for more than 6½ hours per day and must receive 3 hours of education per day.  Education was initially provided in the Saltaire Dining Hall.  The Schools opened in 1868 and provided places for 700 children in very well-equipped facilities which had central heating, gas lighting and playgrounds at the back.   With gardens at the front, and the four stone lions on guard, the Schools and the Victoria Hall opposite provide a very attractive arrangement at the heart of the village.  The school building still provides education, now being part of Shipley College.

In the 1870s primary education became the responsibility of local School Boards. Titus Salt Junior was the first Chairman of the Shipley School Board and a new elementary school was built on land at the edge of the village on Albert Road.  In 1876, these existing schools in the village centre became a High School for older students.

[No 10 on the street plan]