Heritage Project | Criftins CE Primary School

Heritage Project

Class Visitor

Another fantastic visitor this week - Mr Alan Peever.

Mr Peever grew up in Criftins and has seen the village develop significantly over time. He told us many fascinating stories about the local people, his family owned bicycle shop, Gadlas Hall and the Greenhill Bank sweet shop!

Mr Peever enjoyed his visit to Criftins school and he said that seeing a photograph of him and his wife outside the local post office on one of our heritage displays made his day!

Heritage Models

The amazing models that the children in Class 3 completed! I was blown away by the effort that went into completing them.

Our Heritage Display

Road Trip with Mrs Cavell

Mrs Cavell, who is very knowledgable local, kindly offered to take me (Miss Evans) on road trip around the village. We stopped off at various heritage sites around Greenhill Bank and Brynore. It was very interesting and it enabled me to then teach the children about the historical buildings. These included the old School House and its gardens (where the tin school was once situated!), The Old Shop (a shop in Brynore that sold vegetables and flowers), Brynore Hall, Balcarres House (an old public house), Frank Lloyd's brick house (he was the village joiner and undertaker), The Horseshoe (another old public house), an old smithy and the site where the village grocery shop once stood (Greenhill). Thanks again Mrs Cavell!

Heritage Walk

On Friday morning, we set off for a 'heritage walk' around Criftins. We stopped off at various sites including shops and pubs that are no longer there - The Old Bakery, Revells shop, the old Post Office, The Old Grapes pub, the old vicarage and Gadlas Hall (where former French president, Charles de Gaulle, was once a resident!). One of our last stops was the house where Mrs Pitcher was born. We were fortunate to meet some local residents who gave us even more information about the history of the village. We learnt all about the brick factory that was once in Criftins. Mr Sumner told us that the church and a few other houses in the village were built using bricks from the factory! Addionally, the owner of 'The Old Grapes' spoke to us about the history of the pub and others that were once in the area. A very interesting and enjoyable morning for Class 3.

Class 3 Visitors

Over the last week, we have had the privilege of listening to Mrs Smith, Mrs Evans (Aunty Gwenda) and Mrs Gargiulo. They spoke to us about their memories and experiences of growing up around Criftins. We were all so interested by what each of them had to say and learnt so much about how our local area has changed over time. Thanks again to our wonderful visitors!