Stoke Park School

Hi My grandmother attended Stoke Park school in the 1930s. She remember a school song which she loved but none of the family can now remember what she said it was - if anyone knows this we would be really, really grateful Many thanks

When I was there, the school song was "England", it began "This royal throne of kings, this sceptred island, this earth of majesty, this seat of Mars . . ." It's adapted from John of Gaunt's speech in Richard II, I learned later. I doubt it's the school song now but you never know! Is this the song your grandmother was thinking of?

Hello to you all & welcome to, Kfrizzer. I hope & trust that you will enjoy your time on our Coventry History Forum. My only memories of the school from my childhood were the fact that it was a girls' entry by exam, the uniform colours which I believe were bottle green & red. Please correct me if I am wrong on that.

Fortunately the uniform was navy blue and red - a bottle green/red combination would have been distinctive, to say the least! There was no special exam to get in, just the 11+, in the mid-1960s anyway.

My wife attended Stoke Park from 1948, she thinks the school song was Jerusalem.

Thank you Primrose.

Hello Everyone This is going to seem an unusual request, but it is a mystery that needs to be solved. To solve it we need to find a lady called Hazel Brookes. The reason for why, is that she has an amazing photograph of my old school, Stoke Park. It has puzzled me for the past 12-13 years as Hazel had brought it in one day to our Adult Education English Class session. Within the photograph, Stoke Park was the central focus. It showed it as a part temporary fire station on the Dane Road side of the site and shelters on the Walsgrave Road side of the site, near were the All Weather Pitch is at present. To the right, as many locals will know, on the forum site was a Cinema. To the left St Michael’s Church. However, the main mystery of the photograph is across the road from the present site of Stoke Park School where, I now know to be houses, were a row of factories are going off into the distance and down what is now Longfellow Road. All this is viewed from aloft, a hot air balloon above the Rose and Crown site. Due to my recent findings of maps from the area around 1939, which the photograph was dated. Including talking to locals, who definitely say there were houses there and not factories, as well as speaking with Rob Orland, I have now come to the conclusion that either the photograph was a hoax or a propaganda ploy. The latter, Rob believed in more than my other theory, as he believes it could have been used to trick the enemy into believing that factories were on the location, were in fact there were houses. This is probably a more likely reason for the photograph, although both Rob and I agree it was a cruel trick, if indeed this was the reason for the photograph. However the other mystery, as stated, is Hazel Brookes as she is acting as a Custodian to the photograph, which she found as she was clearing out the attic in her family home. I am unable to locate her, partly due to having a Mild Memory Cognitive Difficulty and not remembering where she lives, partly because until the last five years I have been partly separated from society and the other reason is partly due to privacy reasons I can’t ask Adult Education for her contact details. So I was wondering if anyone on the Historic Coventry Forum would know Hazel or know anyone who knows her or her location, if she is still alive. It is possible as she might be in her late 70s or early 80s now. Otherwise it would be her descendants who we need to find. It would be great to see the photograph again as I am now a member of Stoke Local History Group, which is on every first Friday of the month at Stoke Library. Plus it would be great if we had a copy of the photograph for Stoke Local History Group, but more importantly for Stoke Park School its self to have a copy of the photograph, as well as Historic Coventry Forum and Coventry Archives to all have copies. The last mystery is the man who took the photograph from the hot air balloon. I remember that Hazel mentioned his name, but again due to my memory problem I can’t remember it. I hope one day someone will solve this problem, as it’s not just important for local history, but for Coventry as a whole and even possibly the country. Even though it maybe either a hoax, or the now more favourable explanation of a propaganda photograph it is still an amazing photograph that we can all one day share. I hope it will be found in our lifetime. Obviously I don’t wish Hazel or her family to be harassed by anyone. I have no problem with her family wanting to be Custodians. I just feel we all deserve a copy of the photograph and there’s no harm in a copy.

Many schools in Coventry adopted Jerusalem as a school song. Phantom Enigma, I never heard of any such propaganda photo's. Why choose Stoke in all England? Why a hot air balloon in 1939 unless military observance? - not likely to divert bombing to my mind. Without seeing the photo I cannot offer any suggestion other than some defence map or the like. I think hot air balloons or such were not allowed - think of the panic in wartime to the public. No, I just don't see it. Sorry. I can only suggest the CET may have some light on the subject.

The CET wouldn’t be able to help as a lady called Hazel Brookes has the photograph in question. I was wondering if anyone who lives in Coventry either knows of Hazel Brookes, or knows anyone who knows her. She is acting as a Custodian to the photograph in question, which she showed her Adult Education English class about 12-13 years ago. It is an amazing photograph of Stoke Park School, showing it as a central focus and part Temporary Fire Station and part shelters as mentioned in my previous message. We all would like to see the photograph in question dated 1939 as Hazel has the name of the photographer And if we could find out what his name was we would be able to shed more light on why he took it and why there seems to be factories where no factories should be. If anyone knows of Hazel Brookes it would be a great help?

Phantom Enigma, If there was any such balloon then the CET is more likely than anyone else to know why. There is no chance of contacting the photographer, they would be way over 90 years of age, and how old do you make Hazel Brookes?

We could try the CET I suppose, but it definitely must have been a hot air balloon, as standing on the roof of the Rose and Crown wouldn’t give the detail the photo showed. Unless it was a very low flying small aeroplane. However it definitely looked more like it must have been a hot air balloon. Hazel would probably be either in her 70s or early 80s by now. She wanted the photograph to be kept in her family, so she might have passed it on to her adult children. I have checked to see if we could find her in the Electoral register and there is an H Brookes in the Windmill Park, Windmill Lane, part of Coventry. So hopefully we can find out whether or not it’s her. Otherwise the reason for why I have put my message here is to know if anyone else knows her or knows of any relatives of Hazel’s. We still would like a copy of the photograph, along with the name of the photographer as we might be able to look him up in the Coventry Archives.

Checking on 192, that is Harold Brookes

Hazel Olive Brookes, born 1935, died 1978, England & Wales Deaths, Coventry, Warwickshire, England, age 43 . . .? Not this one then . . although if still living she'd be approx 83. Edited by member, 20th Nov 2018 12:40 pm

Frizzer: I checked with my cousin in France, aged 85 who went to Stoke Park School, and she confirmed this was the school song.

Oh no LOL I hope she is still alive. I saw her only 12-13 years ago - 2005-2006. If she isn’t still alive I hope someone in Coventry will know of her and her family, as we really need to find the photograph so we can have a copy for Stoke Local History Group. Then we can give Stoke Park School, Historic Coventry and Coventry Archives a copy also. Edited by member, 22nd Nov 2018 9:43 am