Schools Earle Street Crewe

The Crewe Education Committee have adopted plans by Mr George E Bolshaw, of Crewe, for new schools to accommodate 1,570 scholars, and to be built in Earle‑street. [Building News 26 August 1904 page 308]

CREWE - The town council of Crewe received at their last meeting a recommendation from their Education Committee that the commission for the new schools to be built in Earle-street at an estimated cost of £20,000 should be given to Mr. Bolshaw without instituting a competition. The committee had previously adopted a resolution that competitive designs should be invited for all new schools to be built by them. When the recommendation came up for confirmation Mr. Kinsey criticised the action of the committee and referred also to the fact that the preparation of plans for the enlargement of Broad Street schools had likewise been given to Mr. Bolshaw without a competition. He had previously urged the necessity of all work of this kind being thrown open to competition, and he was still of the same opinion. While Mr. Bolshaw was a personal friend of his he felt that the committee were not acting fairly towards other local architects. The usual course pursued by public bodies, when they did not intrust the preparation of plans to their permanent officials, was to advertise and get competitive plans. The Education Committee had sent several things to an outside architect, which could easily have been done by the borough surveyor and his staff. Councillor Pedley associated himself with Councillor Kinsey upon the general principle that in the provision of new schools the committee should advertise for competitive plans. It not only gave them the choice of several designs, but, above all, it did away with any suspicion of favouritism. Councillor Williams, while in favour of competitive plans for new schools, thought the proposed enlargements of Broadstreet school could not very well be thrown open to competition. Some time ago Mr. Bolshaw was asked to report upon all the schools in the borough, as to their structural fitness, sanitary requirements and other matters, and the alterations that were about to be carried out in the Broad-street School were really the outcome of Mr. Bolshaw's report upon that school. Alderman McNeill, J.P., and an ex-mayor, chairman of the committee, strongly defended their action. If they went in for competition, he asserted, they would get most expensive plans sent in, and, assuming that in each case they selected the best, which they would be most likely to do, then the possibility was that they would spend from £2,000 to £3,000 more on a building than was absolutely necessary. The new school which it was proposed to erect in Earle street would not be surrounded by any elaborate ornamental buildings, and he considered that it would be waste of public money to go in for any outside ornamentation in the erection of that school. Other towns in the county had discovered, to their cost, that the fact of having competitive plans was a very expensive process. He (Alderman McNeill) was in conversation with one of his Majesty's inspectors a short time ago and told him that he was strongly in favour of competitive plans. This gentleman said that if the local authority had plenty of money to spend, then the best way to get rid of it was by having competitive plans. In the interests of economy, however, the inspector assured him that it would be far better for the committee to select their architect, tell him exactly what they wanted, how much money they could afford to spend upon any school, and then he could prepare plans accordingly. The committee's recommendation was eventually adopted.[Building News 14 October 1904 page 560]

CREWE’S NEW SCHOOL - A new type of school, with departments for elementary and higher elementary education was opened at Crewe yesterday. Provision has been made for 1,525 students, and it is intended to draft into the higher elementary school pupils who have completed their education in the other elementary schools in the borough – girls to be give practical instruction in the home arts and boys manual instruction in the industrial pursuits. Mr Alderman W M’Neill (chairman of the Education Committee) opened the new buildings as was presented by the architect, Mr G Bolshaw of Crewe and Southport, with a gold key. [Manchester Guardian 28 March 1908 page 4]

Reference    Building News 26 August 1904 page 308
Reference    Building News 14 October 1904 page 560 – council meeting
Reference    Manchester Guardian 28 March 1908 page 4