The Oratory - Upper Garston Lane
The Oratory - Upper Garston Lane


The Oratory of St Giles was originally built as a School House in 1820 with a grant from the National Society. But it was also used as a place of worship, when needed by the congregation of the Church of St James the Great, who came to the little chapel to pray. In 1877 the school room was enlarged to its current ‘T’ shape. By this time it had 22 children on the register ranging from only two years up to 12 years.

During the 19th century the children were expected to learn by rote and even the very little ones learned to quote scripture and recite hymns. As time went on discipline became stronger and many children played truant rather than attend, preferring to spend the money given to them by their parents for lessons on playing in the hills while setting out and returning home as if they were attending school.

By 1922 the authorities regarded the building as unsanitary and in 1928 the children were all moved to the new council school that had been built just beyond the current Village Green. The Oratory continued to be used for Sunday school festive meetings, bell ringing classes and other church-related activities until 2009. However, having decided that it could no longer justify the cost of its upkeep, let alone the cost of adding proper foundations to stabilise it, the Church of St James the Great sold it off and by 2013 it had been converted into the charming two-bedroom house that it is today.

'Early Education in Bratton' by Kathleen White

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Bratton History Association.

The Bratton History Association aims to provide all those curious about local history with an opportunity to meet, exchange ideas, and discover more about the history of Bratton and Wiltshire. Activities include monthly meetings, talks by professional historians, visits to places of interest to historians, and our own local history project.

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