Notre Dame Catholic School

[mike-s 13]

I remember my late mum saying she went to Notre Dame catholic school, this would have been 1930s. Not having lived in Sheffield for many years myself I wondered if the school was still still functioning as a school, or if not, what is it now?

[GOLDEN OLDIE 15]

Notre Dame when I attended it in the 1950s was very different from how it is today. We were an all girls school, no male teachers and many teachers who were nuns.  The selection process of the Eleven-Plus was an unfair system. If many of the pupils hadn't had places at school bought for them and many being non-Catholic anyway, there would have been many more opportunities for working class children to have obtained a place at grammar school. My book 'Bottle Green Knickers With Pockets - Growing Up in 1950s Sheffield' has a very interesting chapter on Notre Dame, especially the sex education (or lack of!) The bottle green knickers were our gym knickers!!!! Other grammar schools had various colours!!!

email me on [email protected] for details of the book.

[Guest makapaka]

30 minutes ago, mike-s said:

I remember my late mum saying she went to Notre Dame catholic school, this would have been 1930s. Not having lived in Sheffield for many years myself I wondered if the school was still still functioning as a school, or if not, what is it now?

It’s still a school. 

 

[mike-s 13]

52 minutes ago, GOLDEN OLDIE said:

Notre Dame when I attended it in the 1950s was very different from how it is today. We were an all girls school, no male teachers and many teachers who were nuns.  The selection process of the Eleven-Plus was an unfair system. If many of the pupils hadn't had places at school bought for them and many being non-Catholic anyway, there would have been many more opportunities for working class children to have obtained a place at grammar school. My book 'Bottle Green Knickers With Pockets - Growing Up in 1950s Sheffield' has a very interesting chapter on Notre Dame, especially the sex education (or lack of!) The bottle green knickers were our gym knickers!!!! Other grammar schools had various colours!!!

email me on [email protected] for details of the book.

Thanks for that Monica, In the middle of moving house at the moment but I'll contact you re the book when I'm sorted. Mike.

[pattricia 582]

Did you have to pass the eleven plus to go there ?

[GOLDEN OLDIE 15]

You were supposed to. It was the only girls Catholic grammar school in the Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham area, but well off parents paid for their girls to go there, even if not Catholic. Therefore it cut down the number of girls who had actually passed the Eleven Plus and could go. Tell me about it!!! My sister and I did manage to get places. That is one thing I have written about in the book.

[pattricia 582]

52 minutes ago, GOLDEN OLDIE said:

You were supposed to. It was the only girls Catholic grammar school in the Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham area, but well off parents paid for their girls to go there, even if not Catholic. Therefore it cut down the number of girls who had actually passed the Eleven Plus and could go. Tell me about it!!! My sister and I did manage to get places. That is one thing I have written about in the book.

Thank you , that’s very interesting.

[zach 235]

18 hours ago, pattricia said:

Did you have to pass the eleven plus to go there ?

My sister went there. I can't remember how she got a place. I remember it had to be earned, not given. You could be right.

[Ridgewalk 102]

22 hours ago, GOLDEN OLDIE said:

You were supposed to. It was the only girls Catholic grammar school in the Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham area, but well off parents paid for their girls to go there, even if not Catholic. Therefore it cut down the number of girls who had actually passed the Eleven Plus and could go. Tell me about it!!! My sister and I did manage to get places. That is one thing I have written about in the book.

I wonder if that also applied to De La Salle ? I’ve an absence of good memories ( any) of that god forsaken place. I do appreciate that others saw it differently. 

[Alextopman 1,435]

3 hours ago, Ridgewalk said:

I wonder if that also applied to De La Salle ? I’ve an absence of good memories ( any) of that god forsaken place. I do appreciate that others saw it differently. 

I knew a las who got expelled from Rowlinson in the 70's and his parents paid to get him into De La Salle, he was also a handful there.

[GOLDEN OLDIE 15]

There were not many good memories of De La Salle College run by the Christian Brothers. (Known as the Christian Buggers) One of the brothers was nicknamed The Silent Assasin! There is a link I believe on this forum.

[mikeG 16]

On 01/11/2022 at 12:13, mike-s said:

Thanks for that Monica, In the middle of moving house at the moment but I'll contact you re the book when I'm sorted. Mike.

Its a good read Mike.  Highly recommended.