Children’s Home

There was a Red House school near Buxton in Norfolk.it took in children from all over the country. It has had a very chequered history and it has been in the news many times over the years and is in the news again even though it closed down years ago.

Allegations of abuse, dodgy staff and ill treatment.
It changed hands many times over the years and as far as I recall the last people to run it were some sort of cult from Sweden.

That makes sense. It was just called the red house loosely, not formally. That makes the puzzle even more difficult.

Why was there a Catholic nun in the picture if you were Jewish?

I remember when the internet came to be, I was searching for an orphanage of my relative, coming up with nothing, only to find they had changed the name in the 30s.

Just in case ijustwantpeace2020 is still reading this thread -

There used to be a Red House at 23 Park Hill Rise, Croydon CR0 5FJ. When I knew of it, it was a sheltered scheme for the elderly. I don’t know what it was prior to that.

When I asked if any were known locally as the Red House it says this:

That's a good question! Let's look back at the list of children's homes in Surrey during the 1950s that we mentioned:
* Princess Mary Village Homes, Addlestone
* Southern Railway Servants' Orphanage, Woking
* Beechholme, Banstead (we know the houses here were named after trees and shrubs)
* Oakfields, Wokingham (just over the Surrey border)
* Woodrough, Guildford
* Lesslands, Godalming
* Sutton Park, Guildford
* Bognor Regis, Surrey Children's Home (now in West Sussex)
* Linkfield House, Redhill
Going through this list, none of the names explicitly include "Red House" or a very similar variation.
It's possible that:
* A house within one of these larger homes might have been informally known as "the Red House" due to its appearance, but this wasn't its official name. This was the case with the tree and shrub names at Beechholme.
* There was another smaller children's home in Surrey during the 1950s that wasn't captured in the initial search results.
* The name "Red House" might be a detail that is remembered differently over time.
To investigate further, you might want to:
* Check the Surrey History Centre archives specifically for any mention of "Red House" in connection with children's homes.
* Look for local history resources or personal accounts related to these specific homes. Someone who lived there might recall an informally named building.
It's interesting how these details can sometimes be remembered differently!

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

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

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.

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.

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!

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

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. 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!

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

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.

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

have you checked for other areas, boundaries change.

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

Thanks for replies. I’ll keep searching.

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.

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

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.

Oh, I don’t know …!!!?

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

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!

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.