Salford Grammar School Records

Scope and Content

Includes report books, student admission registers, staff registers, visitors book, photograph album, Headmaster's reports, prospectuses, programmes and historical notes.

Administrative / Biographical History

The school was opened as the Salford Municipal Secondary School for Boys in 1904, located at the Salford Royal Technical Institute (RTI). In 1932 it became Salford Grammar School. Initially, the Principal of the RTI was also Headmaster of the school, but in 1909 it was decided that the school should detach from the RTI. A separate building for the school was opened in Leaf Square in July 1914, but the outbreak of World War One resulted in that building being requisitioned for use as a military hospital, and it was not re-occupied by the school until March 1920. In 1937 Salford Education Committee acquired the house and grounds of Claremont, formerly the private residence of Sir Percival Heywood. In March 1953 the construction of a new school on the Claremont site began, and the pupils moved from the Leaf Square site into the new building on Eccles Old Road on 12th January 1956. The new school was officially opened by His Worship the Mayor of Salford on the 21st March 1956. Demolition of the old school building commenced in 1964 and the new Salford College of Technology opened on the site in 1965. On 1st September 1969, Salford Grammar School and Salford Technical High School were merged to form Salford Grammar Technical School. In 1973, a system of Comprehensive education was adopted in Salford Schools and Salford Grammar Technical School and Pendleton High School for Girls were merged to form Buile Hill High School.

Access Information

Access by appointment only. Please contact library-archives@salford.ac.uk

Other Finding Aids

None

Archivist's Note

Description created by Ian Johnston, June 2009.

Custodial History

It appears that some material may have been destroyed in a fire at the school. A handwritten note on GB 427 SGS/13/3 refers to a fire on 7 March 1963 in which some office records were burned, and a few items display some signs of fire damage. For a number of years, Buile Hill High School acted as custodian to archival material which had formerly been housed in the Salford Grammar School Old Boys Memorial Room Library. When the original Claremont School building was demolished in 2008, this material was transferred to the custody of the Old Salfordians' Association. Additional material had previously been deposited at Salford City Archives (identified below by the former SM reference numbers). All this material was transferred to the University of Salford in November and December 2008.