Stanton By Dale -
Part 7 - School Lane
w/e 05 October
2003
For the information about
Stanton By Dale I am indebted to my wife Sandra who conducted
much of the research, the staff at Ilkeston Library for help
with archived material and the Erewash Groundwork Trust who provided
an excellent leaflet packed with information.
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Having reached
the end of the village near the pond (see Part 6) we now return
along School Lane where the yellow of some late summer flowers
adds a welcome splash of colour to the first properties in the
village on the left hand side.
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That same yellow
is also apparent on the right hand side of the road in the form
of a road safety notice fixed to a lighting column advising about
the dangers of driving too quickly. The campaign is running under
the umbrella title of "Better Late Than Never".
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That same lighting
column, pictured here prior to the current campaign, is of interest
for another reason as it bears the name of the manufacturer "Stanton
and Staveley". Stanton By Dale of course overlooks the plant
where these reinforced concrete columns are made and although
they can now be seen world wide, the village can claim to be
the place where some of the first columns to be made were erected.
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At a break in the fence two
signs, one for the Post Office and another for the village shop
proclaim the proximity of these business premises but the building
beyond bears little resemblance to a modern shopping arcade.
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The building is in fact,
the old school dating from 1853. These days it is used as a meeting
place for the church and is used as a mother and toddler centre.
Schoolchildren now have to travel out of the village for their
educations.
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In an earlier part of this series
I promised that we would later see the current Post Office and
here tucked away in a corner of the old playground, next to a
garden shed, is the building that doubles as the village shop.
According to my information, this is a converted Second World
War air raid shelter and although a far cry from the out of town
shopping centres of today, it's a valuable asset to the villagers.
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