Northdown Road
Pristine buildings in Abbotsham Road 1935
Sports Pavilion 1935
The Bideford Grammar School sports pavilion was built and opened in 1934.
It was erected by subscription at a cost of £400 (with £250 contributed by Devon County Council), designed by the Borough Surveyor Mr F R Gray.
The wooden structure included a large central room, two changing rooms (each accommodating 30 boys) with shower baths, wash basins, lockers, lavatories, a veranda, a tool shed at the back, and was painted green and white externally with varnished interior. A flagstaff was presented by the builder, Mr. Adrian Beer.
The official opening ceremony took place in July 1934, coinciding with the inauguration of Old Boys’ Day, which included a cricket match and festivities.
This predated the formal opening of the main school buildings on the new Abbotsham Road site, which occurred on 2 October 1935 (though the pavilion is often captioned or associated with 1935 photos/context as part of the overall relocation and facilities development that year).
This pavilion was part of the school’s move to the Abbotsham Road site around 1934–1935, supporting sports like cricket and rugby on the new playing fields.
Note that the original 1935-era buildings (including this pavilion) were later demolished as part of the school’s redevelopment into Bideford College starting around 2008–2010.
East Quadrangle
Assembly Hall
Art Room
Crafts Room
Gymnasium
The Old Boys Association visit the school for the last time.
Note the university and scholarship records.
The empty buildings in July 2010, prior to demolition
As a Comprehensive in the 1979’s, the buildings had been named the ‘Abbotsham block’
The Old Staff Room
Photos of the demolition in Oct 2010. Note that some of the new College buildings were in place before the Grammar School ones were demolished.
