Children’s Home

Have you tried adjacent counties? Sorry I’m not being any help, but just a thought.

There was a Red House home in Little Shelford Cambridgeshire.

I Googled Red House Childrens Home and came up with several answers.

I have tried all the ones that came up on a Google search but either the records don’t go back that far or too far away from the area I was told. Thanks for the replies though.

I remember the Red House in Lt Shelford that sago mentions. Lived nearby. Were Red Houses possibly part of some organisation? I thought the one in Lt Shelford was rather like an approved school but that’s just a childhood memory and may be wrong, however there was an ‘ordinary’ children’s home in Gt Shelford (Abberley House) which didn’t suffer the same local rumour of ‘bad children’ so there might have been something in it. Not suggesting you were a juvenile delinquent OP!

Germanshephersmum. I was only born in 1954 so couldn’t have been that terrible!?.

Oh, I don’t know …!!!?

Have you tried the archives of the library in the area. I found some information about a mother and baby home I was looking for in a nearby local library.
Good luck.

Red Bank Community/children's home was/is in Newton le Willows, Merseyside.

Good suggestion lavender. I found records of an orphanage in I think Hertfordshire which featured in my family history research in the London Metropolitan Archives. Not where I expected.

Thanks for replies. I’ll keep searching.

Ijustwantpeace I think you’re looking for a children’s home when, judging by your age, what you may want are details of what actually was called a Residential Nursery.

Either way, the links below should at least give you somewhere to go for more information. Local History sites are treasure troves of information and usually resourced by lovely kind people, if you contact them and explain your query they may be able to help.

www.formerchildrenshomes.org.uk/looking_for_former_children_s_homes.html

www.childrenshomes.org.uk/list/Surrey.shtml

www.exploringsurreyspast.org.uk/collections/search/?s=Residential+nursery&qa%5Bkeyword_reference_type%5D=0&qa%5Bpartner%5D&qa%5Btitle%5D&qa%5Bperson%5D&qa%5Bplace%5D&qa%5Bsubject%5D&qa%5Bformat%5D&qa%5Bidentifier%5D&qa%5Bdate_from%5D&qa%5Bdate_to%5D&cbav=2&cbadvsearchquery

have you checked for other areas, boundaries change.

I grew up in Coulsdon Surrey and there was a childrens' home nearby called Reedham Orphanage. Have a look at

www.childrenshomes.org.uk/PurleyReedham/

reedhamheritage.co.uk/

Perhaps this is your former home? Best wishes with your search

Thank you. I’ve tried lots of places over the years and then give up searching. I’m nearly 68 so I might give it another try.

During what years would this home have existed do you think?

Germanshepherdsmum. I was born 1954 so I think around 56/57/58. It was before I started school as I remember being with my parents then. I could not get a straight answer from them when I found an old photo many years ago just that mum was ill and no one to look after me. Very odd as we lived with grandparents, aunt, cousins and my sister in one house. I have a distinct smell that comes to mind every now and then. Almost like hot bread and milk being given to me. The photo showed a very young me with a nurse or nun in a garden. No relatives to ask now. All very odd!

I can understand why you want to find out. It’s an important part of the jigsaw of your life. I’m sure that like me you’ve tried searching on google but there are so many children’s homes which come up in Surrey, none called Red House. There is an ole people’s home of that name and I wonder if it might previously have been a children’s home - a big Victorian house apparently. You mention that there might have been a nun in your photo, which could mean it was a religious institution. Do you remember if your Mum was Catholic or CofE? Just might narrow the search.

Germanshepherdsmum. My parents were both Jewish. None of it makes any sense but I suppose I’ll never find out.

That might make the search a lot easier as they would I imagine have wanted to entrust your care to people of their faith. Don’t give up hope. I’ll have a rootle round when I have a moment. I love family history and a good mystery!

This page has a list (not comprehensive) of former children's homes, grouped by location. There are links to more details of some of them, with some photos which might trigger a memory. www.formerchildrenshomes.org.uk/1900_orphanages.html
It could have been in Sussex or Kent as well as Surrey - the three counties all meet together at one point. Many of my ancestors lived in that area, their records being under any of the three authorities, randomly. It makes it difficult to follow a line of enquiry, as they seemed to move home over the county border at frequent intervals.

There's a Red House Care Home in Ashtead. I don't know how long the big house has been a care home, but maybe it was a children's home in a past life.

25 Newton Road little shellford unfortunately it shut in the 90s

I looked this up with AI looking for 1950s children's homes:

Here's what I've found:
Children's Homes in Surrey in the 1950s:
* Princess Mary Village Homes, Addlestone: While established much earlier, records indicate they were still operating in the 1950s. These homes were set up as a "village of cottage dwellings" with housemothers caring for small groups of children.
* Southern Railway Servants' Orphanage, Woking: This orphanage was functioning in the 1950s. It later became known as the Southern Railwaymen's Home for Children and Old People.
* Beechholme, Banstead: This was a large cottage home that housed many children. Personal accounts suggest it was active in the 1950s, although house names may have changed over time.
* Oakfields, Wokingham (near Surrey border): While it reportedly closed around 1956 to become a home for the elderly, it was a children's home in the early to mid-1950s.
* Woodrough, Guildford: This is listed as a children's home during this period.
* Lesslands, Godalming and Sutton Park, Guildford: Photographs from 1947-1952 held at the Surrey History Centre show these as children's homes.
* Bognor Regis, Surrey Children's Home: A photograph from around 1955 exists, suggesting a children's home with this name, although Bognor Regis is now in West Sussex. Historical county boundaries might explain this.
* Linkfield House, Redhill: While primarily a wartime nursing home for unmarried mothers, someone recalls being there as a child in 1954-1956.
Where to Find More Information:
* Surrey History Centre: This is a key resource for records related to Surrey's past, including children's homes. They hold various documents, including photographs and some registers. You can check their online catalogue.
* Exploring Surrey's Past: This website has information and user contributions about various places in Surrey, including some children's homes.
* Former Children's Homes: This website has a section where people share memories and information about former children's homes, and you might find more details there.
* The National Archives: While they primarily hold policy and administration records, their research guide on children's homes can provide context and point you towards other potential sources.
Keep in mind that records for individual children are often held by the institutions themselves (if they still exist) or in local authority archives, and these records may have restricted access due to data protection.

One of these is in Redhill, and the Beechholme consisted of several houses each with thete own name.
Maybe one of those was Red?
Bit of a long shot - but maybe.
Good luck