Barkingside Dr Barnardo's Homes

A unique record of life in The Village Home Barkingside from 1876 - 1986
Home Page	Time line	1873 to 1929	1930 to 1949	1950 to 1969	1970 to 1989	1990 to 2000	Today	Memories

1873	17th June Thomas Barnardo is presented with Mossford Lodge in Barkingside as a wedding present from John Sands. The property comes with a 15 year lease. Thomas has a dream that the Girls' Village Homes is created on the land next to Mossford Lodge. His plan is to enable girls to be brought up in homes in clean, country air and avoid the large institutional workhouses, He wants to attempt to substitute the natural Condition of a cottage home'.
1874	Oct Mossford Lodge is officially opened, it has places for six girls. It quickly grows to sixty and becomes a problem for Thomas Barnardo. Mossford closes.
1875	9th June Foundation stone laid for Myrtle cottage by the Rt Hon Earl of Aberdeen the cottage named in memory of Mr. and Mrs Zaneous Dawson's daughter re trip to Oxford. Also stone's laid for 13 cottages and they start to build after this date.
1876	9th July The cottages Myrtle - Woodbine - Clapham - Honeysuckle - Jessamine - Cambridge - Lily - Hawthorn (later renamed Honeythorne) - Daisy Billiter - Rose - Bluebell - Primrose and Forget-me-not are officially opened by Lord Cairns who arrived in the nick of time to officially open The Girls Village Home at 3:30pm. Each cottage cost in the region of £500 to build and will house 12 to 20 girls. 19th July Governor's House - Laundry completed and opened.
1878	10th July The cottages Craven - Salem - Trefoil - Heartsease - Wild Thyme are officially opened by Her Grace Sydney, Dowager. Duchess of Manchester. Violet (later renamed Wild Violet) - Bath - Halifax - Armitie Babies - Hahnemann - cottages officially opened by The Countess Cairns
1879	18th June The cottages Hyacinth - Eton - Beehive are officially opened by HRH. Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck. Epidemic of Scarlet fever, no death are recorded
1880	May - Clarellan - Heather cottages completed.
1887	6th August Burwell Park - Curling - Mickleham - Sweetbriar - Pink Clover - Ivy - Oxford - St. Helena - Syndal - Pussy - Joicey - Clement - Mayflower - Cyril - Sir James Tyler - Ilex - Hope - Peace cottages completed and opened. Cairns House built in memory of Dr. Barnardo's first President Earl of Cairns.
1894	April Dedication service held in the Multi - denominational Children's Church
1896	September Mossford Junior and infants Schools opens its doors.
1897	7th July Mossford Junior and infants Schools officially opened on Founders day
1901	Embroidery School for girls with physical and learning difficulties completed.
1903	11th July Dr. Truell cottage was opened by the Duchess of Somerset Faith Cottage was opened by Georgiana, Countess of Seafield. Ethel Bolton Cottage was opened by Lady Hope. Jessamine and Mignonette Cottage opened by Mrs Ingleby. John Sands opened by Sir Robert Anderson. Queen Victoria House a Quarantine house for girls and young children (Archibald Morton Wing, Wilson Wing, Babie's Wing
1904	16th July Edmond Hanny, Watts Sanatorium, Francis Reckitt - Sir George Williams - Crosswell - John Howard Anagas - Marian - Henry Mountain 1903 - Gustasp and Cannizaro Cottages opened by HRH Princess Henry of Battenberg.
1905	15th July Joy - In Memoriam Benjamin Hood - Larchfield M'Culloch cottages opened. along with Edmund Hannay Watts Sanatorium Dr. Thomas Barnardo laid the foundation stone for The Young Helpers League. Dressmaking School - Cookery School opened. The Village now covers 60 acres with 64 cottages. 1,300 girls live there aged from two to 1 6 years.
1906	30th June Young Helpers' League and James Holmes Lucking cottage were officially opened by Lady Brasscy.
1908	George Brampton RA sculptor (who created the Peter Pan statue in Kensington gardens) unveils his 20 - foot memorial to Thomas Barnardo.
1911	6th March Australasian Hospital opened The Hospital had been paid for by donation of the people of Australia. A Barnardo old boy The Hon John Page helps the fund start. click here to read
1928	Queen Victoria Home, The Village, Barkingside. changed its function and became a training home for overseas, for girls going to Australia and Canada.
1937	26th June H.R.H The Duchess of Gloucester visited The Village on Founders Day. 9th August The afternoon service from the Children's Church The Girls Village Home was broadcast.
1938	28thSeptember 1,500 girls and some boys evacuated from The Village Home during the Second World War, within three week they are all back.
1939	1st September 1,500 girls and some boys evacuated from The Village Home during the Second World War. The girls home would never be the same.
1945	The Girls Village Home re-opens as the The Village Home Barkingside.
1960	Plans are agreed to reduce the numbers of children living at The Village from 600 to 100 within five years.
1965	Southwood House, a forward thinking new project is opened. Its aim is to give new, unmarried mothers time to consider their options after the birth of their baby and decide whether or not they wanted to give their child up for adoption. Mossford Lodge is vacated.
1967	The Village orchard is cleared and new headquarters are built there after 99 years at Stepney. New building officially opens in March 1969.
1969	Barnardo's sells 30 acres to Redbridge Borough Council. The local authority has plans to develop a civic centre on the site and demolishes one cottage. The remaining three cottages: Gustasp, Henry Mountain and Marian become local authority children's homes. The land is later sold again for a new supermarket. Tesco's stands on the site of the library and Henry Mountain Cottage.
1973	The new Scotch House opened
1975	New Mossford, a residential school for young people with disabilities is opened on a she near Mossford Lodge. It includes a medical centre swimming pool.
1979	Long term residential care at The Village ceases. From now onward children stay at The Village while prepared for long term fostering and adoption.
1982	The country's first residential pre fostering project opened in Cambridge cottage, helping children develop a life story'. Cottages around the green are now a conservation area.
1986	Barkingside closes as a home for children, but the work goes on.
1990	Scotch House a residential/retirement home for Old Boys and Girls and staff is closed. It was built on the site of the governor's home.
1991	The Village is officially closed after an internal Barnardo's report describes The Village as 'too isolated from the community and 'outdated' for the needs of modern child care. All children moved to fostering, adoption or short term residential settings.
1995	The clock tower, Cairn House, a listed building, is restored by Derek Wills plus helpers and reopened by the Mayor of Redbridge and the then Barnardo's Chief Executive Roger Singleton.
1997	After Care department moves into new offices in Ivy and Oxford cottages overlooking the Village green.
2000	11 cottages sold on a long lease to Anchor Housing Association.
2007	1st April After Care and Family Connections merge into one single service, to be based in Barnardo’s After Care dept. The new service will continue the work of After Care and Family Connections, but now under one roof, working with people who either spent time in Barnardo’s Care as children (post care adults) or who were placed in adoptive homes through Barnardo’s (adopted adults). The new service is to be called Making Connections Records, Counselling and Support Service.
All information and photographs held within this web site are © copyright and should not be copied or shared without express permission. Please note this web site does not in any way speak for Barnardo's. Its purpose is purely for research and historical interest.

A unique record of life in The Village Home Barkingside from 1876 - 1986

A unique record of life in
The Village Home Barkingside from 1876 - 1986