Archives for Longfields
Poetry by Pen Y Bryn Pupils
These poems are written by the talented pupils from Ysgol Pen Y Bryn taking inspiration from some of the early photographs of Longfields Association and Cerebral Palsy Midlands. They were written during our workshop day at Pen Y Bryn School, Sara Beer from Disability Arts Cymru and film maker Ben Ewart-Dean led the event and we looked at the photographs and saw a short clip of some old film footage. The pupils reflected on the material and wondered about: why the pupils did not have a uniform but the staff did how uncomfortable the calipers were that some of the children were wearing what
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A trip down memory lane at West Glamorgan Archive Service
It is always a pleasure to visit West Glamorgan Archive Service, a warm welcome always awaits! This week a group from the Resource Centre came to look at some old photographs and have a think about what they would like to see in the exhibition. Amongst the group were the two Paulines, Chris and Sara plus Andy and staff from the Resource Centre. After a visit to the Strongroom where we saw the oldest item in the archives – the Neath Charter, written in Latin on parchment we made our way to the search-room. We had a chat about the project
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Question time at Pen Y Bryn
Pen Y Bryn pupils have been very busy learning about the history of Longfields Association and during October I took part in a question and answer session at the school. The pupils of today wondered what pupils in 1953 did when they started at the school established by ‘Longfields parents’. There was a wide range of questions, some of which are reproduced here. There were lots more! What did they do for entertainment? What lessons did they have? Did they play football/any sport in school? What did they have for dinner? Was there a library in school? Did they go on
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Longfields photo trail
Public meeting at the Ragged School The Association was established in April 1952 and the founders wanted to engage with more families who had children with cerebral palsy. They also wanted to gain wider support in establishing a school in Wales for these children. A public meeting took place with parents and other guests including doctors, orthopaedic specialists, nurses, teachers and representatives from Swansea Corporation. The setting for the meeting on June 5th 1952 was The Ragged School in Swansea. At this meeting, the Association showed a film supplied by Carlson House School in Harborne, Birmingham which highlighted how children
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Association Year Books
As with similar organisations Longfields produced a series of Year Books and between 1959 and 1999 there were a total of twenty-nine books printed. The Year Books are a valuable resource when researching the history of the organisation as they give an insight into the day to day life of the organisation, the issues they faced and achievements made. They also reflect social change and attitudes towards disability. The inside cover of this Year Book illustrates how the organisation was supported during the early years. In addition to the people listed here the Officers of the Association included Honorary appointments of Secretary, Treasurer, Solicitors,
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Felicie May Phillippe
It was March 1954 when a house in West Cross was bought for the Association. This house was called Longfields and was to remain the organisation’s home until it closed in 2011. Mrs Felice Philippe, a benefactor from London bought the house for £5,000 and gave it as a gift to the Association. She has been described in the press as ‘Lady Bountiful’ or as a ‘Fairy Godmother’. It is said that she learnt about Longfields from a newspaper article. Let this extract transport you back to the 1950s where the News of the World is delivered to Mrs Philippe’s
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