ONE of our readers, Dorothy Wood, has written to say how much she enjoys our Looking Back supplement, and to offer a contribution after reading stories about Old Colliers Row at Smithills. It has a place in her heart as she has lived their all her life.

She said: “I attended the school in the 1930’s. At that time Miss Casstles was the head teacher with two other teachers, Miss Vause and Miss Cooper, who was a very popular teacher. In 1991 the school celebrated its 150th anniversary and it was a delight to welcome Miss Cooper to the celebrations.

“Inside the school was a large hall with a smaller room at one end. In the large hall there was a bungalow range fire which was always burning brightly, this having been lit by the caretaker who lived in one of the cottages next to the school. In those days there were no school dinners and children took their own. If it was a lunch that had to be heated up this was put in the oven. The fire was very useful to dry the clothes of children who had to walk a long distance when it was raining.

“The children in those days came from the cottages and farms on the moors behind Colliers Row, and also children from Barrow Bridge would walk up Longshawford Lane the school. In later years a bus service was arranged to pick up the children from the Smithills Dean area. It was then used to take people from the Colliers Row area into town to do their shopping. The bus returned in the afternoon and brought people up to the school and then returned taking the school children home at 3.30pm.”

Dorothy also remembers that behind the cottages of New Colliers Row was a school garden and all the children participated in growing flowers and vegetables. In the early days of World War Two a large corrugated Anderson air raid shelter was built in a corner of the school garden.

Colliers Row School was used as a Sunday School and was one of the centres of worship attached to St. Peter's, Halliwell. Dorothy added: “In the 1920’s services were held every Sunday for the local people. These services eventually closed, but the Sunday School continued. I was taken at an early age and continued until I became a Sunday School teacher myself, a job I did until the school was closed and eventually sold.

“My husband and I then met with the children in our own home at Old Colliers Row for several more years. Our children attended the school in the 1960s. Colliers Row School is very special to me, and having lived at Old Colliers Row all my life I have some lovely memories of the school and the area.”