Despite the Elementary Education Act 1870 and the beginning of Public Grants for education facilities and operating costs, the ensuing public system was ill equipped to provide high quality primary education – it lacked trained teachers, proper facilities and its focus was on the lower class.. Moreover the school leaving/finishing age was 12.

Schools more focused on meeting the desires expressed by the parents of the children of the emergent middle class and professional families, for whom fees would be charged, began to be established. This was the case for Lady Barn House School. Begun in 1873 by William Henry Herford and his wife, to enable them to put into practice the ideals promoted by Fröbel and Pestalozzi.  “The Day School for Boys and Girls” started in a house on Wilmslow Road, Withington, in April 1873, but within a few years moved to Lady Barn House nearby which gave the school its current name (the school is still flourishing, but has moved to Cheadle, south of Manchester).

In its early years the school was strongly supported by the German community of Manchester: 111 pupils joined the school in the first 10 years and 42 of them had German names.

Louisa and Eduard were married in 1877 and for Louisa, that began a decade of baby production: Franziska (1878), Marion (1879), Juliet (1880), Helene (1882), Alick (1883), Russell (1886), and Arnold (1887).

Since Caroline Herford, William Herford’s daughter, was a good friend of Louisa’s and, from 1886 until 1907, was Headmistress of Lady Barn House School, it is unsurprising that, as Louisa’s children came of age to attend primary school, all were enrolled at Lady Barn House School, the four girls were to be found at Lady Barn House School in 1889, to be joined, in 1890 by Russell and Arnold, and by Alick some years later. Max Enke, who was later to marry Marion Lejeune also attended the school as a child. Caroline Lejeune, not born until 1897, was enrolled there at 3 years of age in 1900.

Photos of early records (click any photo for enlarged view).