Before 1870, elementary education in Luton was provided by the National and British Societies and in dame or private adventure (small independent) schools. A few respectable establishments offered higher levels of education, but the market for these was small. However, the passing of the 1870 Forster Education Act forced the town to confront the situation. This Act required local authorities to assess the number of elementary school places available and, if there was a shortfall, to ‘fill up the gaps’.

The possibility of an elected body having a say in what local children were taught angered members of Luton churches who firmly believed that education was their responsibility. Dony explains how bad feelings on this subject date back to 1834 when the government offered grants towards the building of new schools. The National and British Societies both wanted a school in Luton, but the number of children to be taught allowed for only one grant and that went to the National Society. ‘The die was cast for a dispute that was to disturb the peace of Luton for seventy years.’

Dony, referring to the Forster Act, says that ‘it would have been impossible to have drafted any Act of Parliament to give more trouble to [mainly Nonconformist] Luton’. A vestry meeting was called, possibly ‘the most disgraceful meeting ever held in the town’. The Church promised to build new schools and to provide a sufficient number of places, thereby warding off government interference. Their opponents, led by the treasurer of the British School, wanted a poll which, it was hoped, would support the establishment of a School Board. Some of the points made against the Board system were that it was a ‘leap in the dark’, that once you have a Board you cannot get rid of it and that there was already a burden of taxation. There was also a fear that educating children with public money would lead to feeding and clothing them as well.

Arguments for a Board were that it would provide and secure the education of the ‘entire population … calculated to promote the moral and material well-being of the Working Classes – to fit them for higher spheres of usefulness, to give them a “fair start in life”, and to enable them the better to make their way in the world’. The education which it would provide would be ‘free from all denominational teaching’.

Growth of the Sunday School Movement

Sunday schools played a significant part in the schooling of children in Luton. Before compulsory education, which came into force in Luton in 1874, Sunday schools were often the only places where children could learn to read and write. Later they became the focus of much of the social life of the town. The schools were so important that they have been considered here, even though some of the material relates to the years that preceded the main focus of this book. Reference has also been made to some other Sunday schools in Bedfordshire in order to present a fuller picture.

Dr Kay Shuttleworth, the first Secretary of the Committee of the Privy Council (precursor of the Ministry of Education), which was set up in 1839 ‘for the consideration of all matters affecting the education of the people’, believed that Sunday schools were the ‘root from which sprang our system of day schools’. This belief was shared by Wesleyans in Luton who claimed that their first school was ‘the harbinger not only of the fine schools that now are our pride in Chapel Street, Waller Street, and elsewhere but also a great stimulus to the educational movement in general’. It was also said that ‘the Sunday School Movement may claim some credit for the splendid Elementary and Secondary Schools of the town’. In order to support this, names are given of men who were active both in Sunday and elementary schools: Mr Henry Blundell, Mr Gustavus Jordan and Mr George Warren, JP, CA.

Robert Raikes of Gloucester, a publisher, has generally been credited with the introduction of Sunday schools although there are in fact records of other schools which existed before 1780, which is when Raikes began to popularize the idea. Raikes, having observed the lawlessness of children running wild on Sundays, believed that by educating the children he might find a way to turn them from crime. ‘He saw that in many cases their misdemeanours were the result of ignorance alone, and that if instruction and enlightenment were not provided, many more people would be in the same pitiful state’.

This book has looked at the changes in education and employment prospects for girls in Luton and has tried to demonstrate how these two aspects of their lives were inter-related.

Increased opportunities

The date chosen for the commencement of this study (1874) was an important one for girls in Luton because it marked both the establishment of the School Board and the introduction of compulsory education. Whereas girls’ time had once been dominated by the demands of the hat industry and their educational prospects had been at the mercy of parents’ ability to pay fees and forgo their children's income, regular attendance at school was now obligatory.

Women in Luton had traditionally received education in less formal organizations and this kind of initiative was still alive, for example private commercial courses were available. Organizations such as the Sunday and adult schools no longer needed to teach basic literacy but continued to receive loyal support in classes which extended interests and stimulated discussions. Lectures given under the auspices of groups such as the Workers’ Education Association (WEA) were also supported by Luton women. Middle-class families who were conscious of their status and who wished to have their daughters educated as young ladies, supported private establishments throughout the years covered in this book.

However, the fee-paying day secondary school which had been set up by Bedfordshire County Council (BCC) was open to all and became increasingly popular. Children whose parents were unable to pay could earn a free place, but there were other financial constraints such as purchasing uniforms and supporting charities. It was therefore inevitable that this school was seen to be for the privileged few. It also seems likely that some kind of selection existed within the girls’ school itself when the emphasis became decidedly academic. However, by 1924 there was, for a small minority, the very real possibility of a university education.

There were also increased opportunities for girls in the employment market. Changes in the hat industry had required local businessmen to welcome other industries into the town, with the result that women had wider choices. Census figures show that, while the hat industry dominated the scene, many women were taking advantage of opportunities to work in local factories and offices. By the 1920s, a Juvenile Advisory Committee had been set up to offer advice to boys and girls who were leaving school. This would hardly have been necessary when one industry dominated women's lives, but times were changing.

This chapter looks at the effect which the 1902 Education Act had on the schools and on the lives of girls in Luton. Some of the curriculum changes offered a genuinely wider concept of education, an attempt to shift the emphasis ‘from mere instruction to education’1 and a desire to stimulate children as individuals whose physical and mental needs must be met. Others, however, were based on an ideology which thought of girls primarily as potential wives and mothers and presented a challenge to a town where women had, for many years, been an accepted part of economic life.

External influences were significant: the Boer War activated a concern for the health of the nation, the responsibilities of Empire influenced an ethos of duty and service and the First World War affected the lives of children, particularly with regard to their level of attendance. Another major influence on the working lives of children was the setting up of agencies which gave them advice on their choice of employment. Diana St John, having assessed the experiences of girls educated during this period under the London County Council, identified different approaches to the education of girls. The first of these is that schools came a poor second to the influence of the home. The second approach held that girls’ education should be directed towards their future domestic roles. A third, very negative, attitude tended to ignore girls almost completely. The fourth was more positive, however, and saw girls as ‘pupils in their own right’:

Luton schooling is assessed with these factors in mind.

The 1902 Act

County councils were to be responsible for education, but in Bedfordshire both Bedford and Luton were large enough to be Part III authorities and could therefore control elementary education within their boroughs. As far as Luton was concerned the changes meant that the Luton Education Committee (LEC) supervised the town's elementary schools while the Bedfordshire Education Committee (BEC) controlled secondary education and also assumed responsibility for the schools in the hamlets.

This book complements two others which have already been published in this series. Volume 78, Strawopolis (1999), looked at the transformation of Luton in the middle of the nineteenth century ‘from a market town, where hats were made, to principally a manufacturing centre’. Volume 82, Vauxhall Motors and the Luton Economy, 1900–2002 (2003), explored the life of the town in the twentieth century when the dominant hat industry was replaced by an equally dominant motor industry. This study (Volume 84) has concentrated on the changing role of women against these backgrounds.

The year 1874 was significant as it was the one in which the first Luton School Board was elected. In the same year education became compulsory for the town's children. New schools were built and by 1924 elementary schools were offering a wider and more stimulating style of curriculum. Of particular importance was the opening of a secondary school for girls under the leadership of a dedicated headmistress who brought new vision to the furtherance of higher education for girls. By 1924 the school had established a tradition of excellence and had laid foundations for the future. This book has therefore concentrated on the years between 1874 and 1924.

The focus of this study was originally intended to be the provision of schooling, but it soon became clear that the demands of the traditional hat industry and those of the School Board were closely intertwined. The theme therefore ceased to be education alone but the fascinating relationship between education and the changing patterns of employment for women.

Luton itself is worthy of serious study because its character is in some respects unique. In 1874 political power in the town lay with businessmen, mostly self-made, who ruled over every aspect of urban life and saw that prosperity could be achieved within the hat trade and without academic qualifications. Consequently, before 1874, education, particularly for girls, had not been given high priority. This is reflected in illiteracy rates in Luton, which, in 1856, were 44% opposed to the national average of 35%.

One reason for this was the existence of a domestic industry which dominated children's lives. Women, too, could spend the whole of their working lives in the hat industry and they were undoubtedly central to the prosperity of the town.

This chapter will look at specific information regarding the employment of women. The 1911 and 1921 censuses give detailed figures and these have been compared with national figures and statistics for Bedford. Less exact, but of interest from a social point of view, are details taken from the Kelly's Directories for 1890 and 1920. Advertisements in the Luton News between 1901 and 1924 indicate general trends and are of value in the assessment of attitudes and expectations. Year Books have also provided useful information and it has been possible to make some comparisons concerning wages and salaries.

Observations based on the 1911 and 1921 censuses

The 1911 and 1921 censuses show just how employment for women had diversified since the height of the hat industry and the arrival of the new industries. The number of unemployed females in 1921 also indicates that some women preferred to remain at home after the First World War. Figures for Bedford have been noted because they offer a contrast to the types of employment available for women in Luton.

While the female population of Luton had increased between 1911 and 1921, the number and proportion of women employed fell. In some respects this supports Carol Dyhouse's view that ‘the first world war only temporarily increased women's participation in industry, and was followed by a period of intensified social opposition to the employment of married women in industry and professional life’. However, the involvement of women in the new industries seems to have risen, as indicated by the proportion involved with metal, food and chemical production. Significantly, the number of women involved with the hat industry fell from 6,972 (63.5%) in 1911 to 5,992 (59%) in 1921. As women had always worked in the straw industry, there would appear to be no ideological explanation. It is more likely that market forces and the First World War, which had affected export markets, rather than ideology accounted for this drop.

Interesting comparisons can be made between Luton and Bedford. A larger proportion of Bedford's female population was involved in the service industries indicating that the town enjoyed a different social structure, with many families able to employ domestic help. Fewer Bedford ladies worked, although there were significant numbers involved in commercial and public life. By 1921, more Bedford women were working in the food and drink industry, for example at Meltis.

In 1874, employment prospects for girls in Luton were based firmly in the straw industry and for the vast majority of the female population the ability to sew hats was all that was needed to secure an adequate income and maintain a family life. Another significant option, which was open to intelligent girls, was to become a pupil-teacher. It was probably not an easy choice when the enormous freedom which girls and women in the hat industry enjoyed was taken into account. Girls who entered teaching did not enjoy these freedoms for they had strict timetables and were under the control of the managers of their schools, according to the rules of their indentures. Hat girls had the freedom to work at home or to move from one factory to another but, with a few exceptions, they needed to stay in or around Luton to make a living. Teachers could, and did, move to other schools in the area and also to schools in other districts. School holidays may also have been an attraction, although the hat girls had their own holidays during the slack season.

Women in the hat industry socialized with each other, especially in shared workrooms, but teachers enjoyed a more exclusive social life, often in connection with professional associations. That teachers enjoyed each other's company cannot be denied and ‘teaching families’ were significant in the town. There is evidence to show that teachers had money to spend on foreign holidays and there were other advantages such as pension rights and tied accommodation. It is not easy to compare incomes because of the different types of salary scale, but it is true to say that experienced teachers did earn more than the average wage in the hat industry. In 1864 it was estimated that few women in the hat trade earned less than 10s a week and many would earn twice that amount. By 1876, adult hat sewers would be earning about 15s a week. Figures for the years 1890 to 1892 and 1917 to 1920 are more specific (see Tables 15a and 15b). Salaries of teachers are given as annual amounts while those of the hat workers are weekly, hourly or piece rate, thus indicating a difference in perceived status.

Opportunities to continue with their own studies must have appealed to some girls and others probably chose to teach from a sense of vocation.

Schools in the hamlets

In 1895, the Luton School Board was informed by the Education Department and the Bedfordshire County Council (BCC) that the extra-municipal part of the parish of Luton was to be divided into the four rural parishes of Hyde, Leagrave, Limbury-cum-Biscot and Stopsley. ‘It is understood from My Lords’ letter that no change is proposed relative to the area of the Luton Urban District.’ These schools, in what are known as Luton's hamlets, have been a part of the research for this book and, in particular, studies have been made of the logbooks of the Hyde and Stopsley schools. The hamlet schools were under the control of the Luton School Board until 1903 when they became part of the Caddington Group and the responsibility of BEC. Previously, Caddington School, in a village about two miles south of Luton had been managed by the Caddington and Flamstead School Board.

When responsibility was moved to BCC, the Luton Board was asked to nominate four gentlemen

Rural schools seem to have been considered separately from urban schools, probably for two main reasons: they were frequently much smaller and were in more isolated locations. Although there were also similarities between the schools, especially with regard to the curriculum to be followed, this chapter will concentrate on the character of rural schools and the specific problems which they faced. In particular, these involved the vagaries of the weather and the resulting difficulties with travel, the demands of agriculture, the shortcomings of school buildings, the pressures on staff and the apparent lack of esteem in which rural schools were held.

Luton had control over elementary education, but Bedfordshire County Council (BCC) was given responsibility for some other types of provision. The first of these was the setting up of technical training according to the requirements of the Technical Instruction Act of 1889. Some of these classes for women were connected with the straw hat industry, but others were decidedly domestic. They did, however, provide added opportunities for girls in the town to extend their horizons if they so wished.

The Balfour Education Act of 1902 compelled the Bedfordshire Education Committee (BEC) to make provision for the education of children over fourteen and resulted in the setting up of a day secondary school in Luton. Chapter Ten concentrates on this school, which played an important part in the development of girls’ education in Luton. Responsibility for the training of teachers was also transferred to the BEC and the pupil-teacher system was superseded by the appointment of student teachers. This change was not without its critics since the number of trainee teachers would be limited, all student teachers being required to have attended the secondary school. Training was provided for unqualified teachers who wished to become certificated and professional development was offered to serving teachers. These schemes were open to girls in Luton but no longer were opportunities relatively equal; education was becoming more selective.

Technical education

Towards the end of the nineteenth century there were concerns that England was falling behind some European countries in technical subjects and the Samuelson Commission (1882–1884) was asked to address the problem. As a result the Technical Instruction Act was passed in 1889. This gave county councils power to establish Technical Instruction Committees and raise a penny rate (one penny in the pound of rateable value) which could be used to pay for technical or manual instruction. The following year the Local Taxation (Customs and Excise) Act allowed money from the increased duty on beer and spirits to be spent by these committees. This became known as ‘whisky money’. Under the terms of this act teaching a trade was not allowed, but teaching ‘the principles of a trade’ was permitted.

Higher education for girls

Historically the education of girls was considered to be of less importance than the education of boys for ‘women were identified with the private domain of the home’. This was believed to be a ‘natural division’; women were ‘relative rather than autonomous beings’ and were ‘inferior and subordinate to men’. From about 1845, there grew up a movement which fought for the provision of secondary and higher education for women, but no evidence has been found to suggest that this movement had any support in Luton where education for girls was seen to be unimportant. According to June Purvis one reason for the campaign to educate girls from the middle classes was the large number of ‘poorly educated middle-class women [who] had to earn their own living’. This was not significant to Luton in the context of the hat industry.

After 1874, girls in Luton received a basic elementary schooling, but middle-class parents did not see this as appropriate for their daughters. The education which they received has been considered more fully in Chapter Nine, but it is safe to say that most of them were either taught at home or attended private schools. Another route which could be taken by girls who wanted to improve their own education was the pupil-teacher system and this is addressed in Chapter Five. Crucial to this study is the establishment in 1904 of a recognized secondary school which began to take significant numbers of girls from the middle classes as well as capable girls who earned a free place. With the arrival of this school, opportunities for girls began to match those for boys although, in the early days at least, boys still seemed to have received more consideration.

When a separate secondary school for girls was opened in 1919, it was run on similar lines to the North London Collegiate School, the pioneering school run by Frances Mary Buss. She had introduced a wide curriculum and expected high standards from her girls, many of whom received a college education and became headmistresses themselves. In this way a network of similar schools grew up throughout the country.

This chapter looks at the choices made by parents who did not wish to educate their daughters in non-denominational schools or who, for social reasons, chose to send their daughters to independent schools. Informal opportunities were also open to women and girls who were prepared to use their own initiatives, attributes which were very much in keeping with the character of people in Luton. Skills learnt in the home were also valuable, especially in the context of the hat industry. The contribution of these informal types of education was significant, but information is limited because very few records were kept. They are discussed here under the heading Learning and Living, which Harrison describes as learning ‘in terms of social purpose rather than institutional form’.

The first sections outline the provision of the Church and Nonconformists in elementary and Sunday schools. In the early days covered by this study the National Society supported New Town Street (St Paul’s), St Matthew’s, Queen Square, Stopsley, Church Street and Christ Church schools. The Quakers also provided substantially for the town: the endowed Langley Street School remained until the early days of the Board and independent provision on a small scale has been noted. However, their major contribution was probably the adult schools, which offered a similar kind of self-help to that found in the Sunday schools and appear to have been well supported. According to Dony, the Methodists set up schools in High Town and Chapel Street and also the Crown and Anchor School.

Adult education has been taken to mean not only education for adults but, as has been suggested by Gordon, Aldrich and Dean, as education for people who were not attending school on a formal, regular or full-time basis4 and for cultural, general, social, community or political interests.5 Several examples of this type of informal education, springing from personal or group initiatives are to be found. In the early days of the twentieth century, as employment prospects for girls began to widen, there was a need for secretarial training. Many girls with determination and initiative wanted to turn their backs on the local hat industry and move into office work but it appears that the evening classes held at the local secondary school did not meet this demand and Luton girls learnt their skills in private commercial schools.