Higher Grade School, Coleshill Road, Llanelli

At the monthly meeting of the Llanelly School Board E H Lingen Barker was appointed architect for the Higher Grade School and alterations to the Lakefield School at a commission of 6% on outlay. [South Wales Daily News 15 January 1889 page 3]

NEW HIGHER GRADE SCHOOL AT LLANELLY. The formal ceremony of opening the Llanally Higher Grade School took place on Monday.  As many as 70 boys and 50 girls attended the school on Monday morning. The formal opening took place in the afternoon.  The cost of the structure was about £10 per head, taking into account the cost of land, furniture, etc. Mr Barker contended, that the school was one of the cheapest ever built. The School Board had heard, in connection with the intermediate scheme, that the school must cost £15 per head. The new school would cost about £6,000, and the accommodation would be for about 300 boys and 300 girls. The fee was 9d a week. [South Wales Daily Journal 17 March 1891 page 5 abridged]

THE HIGHER GRADE SCHOOL, LLANELLY. - The new Higher Grade School at Llanelly is unquestionably an acquisition to the architectural beauty of the tin-plate metropolis, and the school board are to be congratulated on the happy issue of their efforts to provide higher education, for the children of their constituents. The new building faces the People's Park, and commands a fine view of Carmarthen Bay. It is Gothic in style, the external walls being of local stone, relieved with Bath stone dressings. The building has a frontage of about 120 feet. and is 50 feet in height to the ridge, with an additional 20 feet to the top of the central turret, the roof being of Broseley tiles. The structure and the playgrounds cover an area of an acre, the whole being enclosed by a wall, which in front of the building is to be surmounted by handsome iron railings (executed by Messrs Thomas and Clement, Llanelly). There are two separate entrances, that to the boys' department leading from the People's Park, or south side, whilst the one to the girls' is on the eastern side. Entering first of all the girls' department, which is on the ground floor, we find five separate class-rooms of good dimensions, those on each side being 34 feet by 22 feet, whilst the three central ones are 22 feet 6 in. by 20 feet. There is a. raised gallery in the class-room on the town side for the use of the mistress. A corridor, 70 feet long by 8 feet wide, divides the class-rooms from an excellent lavatory and cloak- room, with four partitions, whilst from the entrance-door is a glazed covered way to the cookery kitchen. This, too, is of a good size, with splendid apparatus. On either side of the fireplace is a gas stove and an ordinary oven; it-has also a pantry and scullery adjoining. Leaving the department, we turn our faces to that of the boys', which is on the upper floor, and reached by a flight of stone stairs, with seven landings. The first room reached is the chemical laboratory, 23 feet by 22 feet in size. This will- be fitted up with the most modern appliances, on the same principle as Dr.  Morgan's excellent laboratory in Swansea, which the popular analyst kindly permitted the members of the board to inspect. In close proximity to this room is a small store and weighing room for chemicals, etc. There are also five class-rooms in the boys' department, of the same size and appearance as the ones below, whilst another long corridor, both being well-lighted, divides them from the lavatory and cloak-room. The rooms are well-ventilated by a wooden tube leading up to the centre turret. The floors are of block wood, those on the upper floor being fireproof (the patent of Messrs Lindsay and Company, London and Llanelly), In the different playgrounds, which are divided by a high wall, are covered ways of 130 feet long and 12 feet wide where the scholars can play in wet weather. All the rooms and corridors are lined with four feet of white- glazed "dado" from the floors, with chocolate moulded capping, which lends a pleasing appearance to the eye. The doors leading into the corridors all have glass-panels. The building is practically fireproof, the floor being of iron and concrete, the staircases of stone, and the inside woodwork covered with cyanite stain. Accommodation is provided for 322 girls and an equal number of boys, the contractors' estimate being £4,350, or a cost, per head of about £6 15s 1d. On the whole, however, it will cost something over £6,000. The architect was Mr H. Lingen Barker, of London, Hereford, and Swansea. The general contractors were Messrs Brown, Thomas, and John, Llanelly, the masonry work being done by Mr David Harris, Llanelly. The hot water pipes: which heat all the rooms were supplied by Messrs. John King, Liverpool; the lavatory fittings by, Messrs Shanks and Company, Glasgow whilst Messrs Vivian Bros., Park-street, Llanelly, were the plumbers and gasfitters. The clerk of the works. was Mr W. Morgan, Lakefield, Llanelly. [South Wales News 18 March 1891 page 7].

Reference    South Wales Daily News 15 January 1889 page 3 - appointment
Reference    South Wales Daily Journal 17 March 1891 page 5 - opening
Reference    South Wales News 18 March 1891 page 7 with illustration - opening
Reference    The Architect 12 July 1889