Stokesby with Herringby
A little piece of Heaven on the Broads
Community Centre
Stokesby Village School
(Community Centre)
Stokesby village school was built in 1875 at a cost of £600 to accommodate 85 scholars and a house was added for the Schoolmaster in 1881. For many years the infant class was taught in a gallery above the main hall and the school Inspectors report for 1923 remarked that this was very cramped. It was to be some time before money could be found to provide a separate room for them despite a new classroom being added in 1896 to increase capacity to 100.
The school also acted as the Parish meeting room until the first Village Hall was built after the First World War. It was also the venue for Coroners inquests including the death of Thirza Kelly on Christmas Eve 1900 when John Cossey was sent for trial for murder.
The number of children in the village gradually declined over the years, and finally the school was closed in 1978 with just 15 children on the roll. Over 1000 children had passed through the school during its 100 year history.
Thanks to a small number of enterprising local residents the school was saved from redevelopment or conversion and bought from the County Council by the village for use as a Community Centre.
The Community Centre is now used for a variety of fundraising events, including Christmas
parties for the village children, dinners, and quizzes. Also held are Stretch and
Tone classes and Murder Mystery plays. The hall can be hired for a small fee -
Within the Community Centre is the Social Club, where you can have a quiet drink and watch boats sail by on the river. Why not come and play darts on a Friday evening from 7.30pm or just enjoy a drink and a chat with friends.
Future events planned in the Community Centre are listed on the Stokesby Calendar link.
