Room 2D

The concluding part of the photo-story, from Roué 41 THE STORY SO FAR… Upon the retirement of the two spinster sisters who had held the posts of Headmistress and Deputy Head, the governors of Barningham High appointed one Daphne Hobbs as the school’s youngest ever Head. Bowing to financial pressure, it was decided that Miss Hobbs would be able to manage without the assistance of a deputy. This, however, did not prove to be the case. The young woman discovered before very long that the running of an establishment catering for the educational needs of upwards of a hundred girls entailed a considerable workload. One of her duties — the disciplining of disobedient pupils — proved particularly arduous. In this direction Miss Hobbs hit upon the idea of seeking out the much needed assistance from within the ranks of the pupils; promoting a senior girl, Joanna Redstone, to the position of Head Girl. The chief duty of this Head Girl was ...

First part of a two part photo-story, from Roué 40 When Daphne Hobbs was appointed Headmistress of Barningham High she immediately encountered something of a problem. For a full twenty-four years prior to her being offered the post, the school — an independent, fee-paying establishment — had been run by two, now retired, spinster sisters. In their wisdom — and not without a little financial pressure, the governors had decided that one woman — providing the person concerned was suitably efficient — would be sufficient to cope with the day-to-day running of the school. So, where there had been two there was now only the one. Of course, Miss Hobbs had done her very best to convince her prospective employers at her interview that she would be able to manage and, indeed, this had proved to be the case… in all but one department. The school’s governors were steadfast believers in the efficaciousness of corporal punishment; Barningham ha...