A school was built in 1793 in the churchyard and had a large number of pupils. Sunday schools were first established here in 1790 and are supported by voluntary subscriptions, and about £10 which is annually collected at the church on the Wake Sunday, the Sunday after St. Lawrence, when sermons are preached for that purpose.

In 1818 the Select Committee into the Education of the Poor produced a report into the extent of education in Darlaston. It stated that there were day schools with 365 boys and girls, and Sunday schools with 180 boys and girls. All supported by subscriptions. The report concluded that:

The poorer classes are more than commonly destitute of the means of educating their children, and are so desirous of them, that the rector is endeavoring to establish a national school, but is in danger of failing through want of sufficient resources; and the  greatest proportion of the inhabitants having been employed in the manufacture of arms, are now reduced to the greatest poverty and distress.

The Elementary Education Act was Passed in 1870, but it took 8 years for the School Attendance Committee of the Local Board to be formed under the provisions of the Act, which stated that:

The Act allowed women to vote for the School Boards and serve as candidates on them. Something that was unheard of in local government at the time. The School Attendance Committee consisted of 10 members with Samuel Rubery as Chairman. Unfortunately the committee didn’t live up to expectations and little was done to provide the school places that were required under the terms of the Act. As a result the Education Department sent a peremptory order to the town in 1883 demanding that the terms of the Act be followed.

Slater Street school in a state of dereliction.

Boys & Girls

Infants

Originally the Central Board School, which was built by the School Board. It opened in July 1885 as a boys' school and was enlarged in 1893. The first headmaster was Mr. J. E. Cherrington. On the first day there were 29 children present in the morning and 33 in the afternoon. For many years the school suffered from a bad attendance record. It seems that both the children and their parents had not grasped the importance of education. Any excuse to stay away was taken. Such events as Wednesbury wake or the local flower show were a good excuse not to go to school.

Some of the children, whose parents worked in coal mines or ironworks used what they called 'Saint Monday' as an excuse to stay away on Mondays. Although parents whose children were frequently absent would be reported to the school attendance officer for truancy, and could be taken to court and fined, little was actually done to solve the problem. One group of children who lived at Catherine's Cross were frequently absent and became known as the 'Cross Gang'.

In 1915 an article appeared in a local newspaper suggesting that the Staffordshire Education Committee had decided to release thirteen year old boys from school. Immediately thirty boys left the school and were sent to work by their parents. It took a lot of effort by the attendance officer to get them back to school again. July became known as the 'Trip Season' because children were often absent in order to attend outings from local churches, chapels or public houses. Sometimes older children were expected to stay at home to look after younger brothers or sisters when their parents went on a daily outing.

Another important factor affecting attendance was illness. Every year there were outbreaks of the flue, measles, chickenpox, smallpox, and scarlet fever. They often reached epidemic proportions and resulted in the closure of the school. In severe winters it was difficult to keep the school warm because of the inefficient heating system. Sometimes the school had to be closed because of burst pipes.

In those days, many of the children were expected to deliver their father's dinner at work, during the school lunch break. In wet weather when they got 'soaked to the skin', they would be kept home in the afternoon. Sometimes children would stay away because they were helping their father at work or had a part time job. Some of them stayed away when they were working in the hop fields when their parents went hop picking.

A few of the children were from poor families who were unable to provide them with adequate food or decent clothing. Some of them had sore feet because of a lack of proper shoes. Others stayed away because they had no shoes. A clothing fund committee sometimes visited the school to help the poorest children. On at least one occasion Mr. William Winn visited the school and provided the poorest boys with a breakfast consisting of tea and buns.

By the 1920s, several new practical subjects were introduced including woodwork, gardening and bulb growing. Many of the boys excelled at sport. The school football team regularly won the Wednesbury and District Challenge Shield and League Cup. In 1921 the relay team won the relay race at Rubery Owen's sports day. Joseph Evans, who was captain of the football team was also captain of the England team in a schoolboy international event and played against Scotland at Glasgow.

Mr. Cherrington retired on the 30th November, 1925. They were hard years, at a time when many of the children were from poor families who didn't value the education system and couldn't wait for their children to start earning money for the family.

In the intervening years things gradually got better, as people's standard of living improved and attitudes changed.. The old slums disappeared and people had higher expectations.

In 1958 part of the school was badly damaged after an arson attack. As a result, a number of temporary classrooms were built, which stayed in use until the school closed.

Slater Street School closed in the mid 1960s and continued to be used for a variety of purposes for many years. Unfortunately the buildings suffered from a series of arson attacks in February 2005 and as a consequence were demolished at the beginning of March 2005.

Slater Street School playground.

Slater Street Woodwork and metalwork building in 2003.

The demolition of Slater Street School in 2005.

A class of boys at Dorsett Road School in about 1918. The teacher on the left is Miss Clapham, the teacher on the right is Mr. F. W. Forward. 5th from the left in the first row standing is Richard Ashmore. Courtesy of John and Christine Ashmore.

A class of boys at Dorsett Road School in about 1919. In the centre at the back is Mr. F. W. Forward.

A class of seven year olds at Dorsett Road School.

Another class at the school, with head teacher Miss Rees on the left.

A class at Dorsett Road School in 1920.

A class of girls at Dorsett Road School, in about 1920. On the second row from the front, on the far left with a large bow in her hair is Emma Sylvia Bott. Courtesy of Madeleine Freelove. Emma Sylvia Bott was born on the 22nd May, 1911 in Peartree Terrace, off New Street.

A mixed class of children at Dorsett Road School in the 1920s. On the right is head teacher Miss Rees. Courtesy of John and Christine Ashmore.

A class of boys at Dorsett Road School in the 1920s. Courtesy of John and Christine Ashmore.

Pinfold Street Primary School

Pinfold Street Primary School.