Cartmel Fell School And The Worn Rock Slide:
The Parish Hall on Cartmel Fell was once the local school until it closed in 1971 due to the falling number of pupils.
It would seem that for at least three hundred years prior, some kind of basic or elementary schooling was provided on the fell, most likely patchy and limited in nature.
As Cartmel Fell doesn’t have a village heart as such, nearby St Anthony’s Church, and Parish Hall are now the focus of community activity.
The hall is now used for community events.
Opposite the hall, a little way up the hillside, you will see ‘The Big Rock’ – a slide, worn smooth by countless children down the years.
When the school was built in 1871, it was considered a very modern design, with at least one open coal fire, a high ceiling with large windows set above eye level to avoid distracting the pupils’ attention.
Until the school was built, children attended lessons in St Anthony’s Church next door.
To this day, the Burblethwaite box pew contains carved grid patterns that can be seen on the seats, which are probably methods of teaching children fractions and multiplication.
During the Second World War, pupil numbers swelled with evacuees, one of whom was the well-known actor Derek Nimmo along with his sister.
Derek remembered having spent only two months in September and October 1939 at Goswick Hall on Cartmel Fell.
He recalled his time there as being ” rather primitive, with no electric light”.
In 1971, the community of Cartmel Fell suffered a major blow when the school became unviable due to falling pupil numbers and was closed.
Today, the old school is used as a parish hall with a surprising number of social and cultural events taking place such as flower festivals and dances, and is even still used as a polling station.
Parish sports are held on the almost flat area nearby which is known as the ‘Lot’.
On Guy Fawkes night the bonfire is built on this part of the allotment.
If you are looking for a Grange-over-Sands holiday cottage within easy reach of Cartmel Fell, look no further and enquire here.
