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This story was submitted to the People's War site by a volunteer from The Chepstow Society, on behalf of Miss H E Richards and has been added to this site with her permission. Miss H E Richards fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

Memories of College Years 1941 - 1944

We were all youngsters growing up together. I was just 18 years old when I joined the National Training College of Domestic Subjects in September 1941. The College had been in Buckingham Palace Road, London since 1889 but had started as a School of Cookery in 1873.

In September 1939 the students travelled to Torquay by train and were meet at the station by members of staff who allocated them to the various hostels, which had been found around the town. These were small hotels or other residential buildings, the largest held 56 students.

By the time I arrived, I knew before I left home the address of my hostel of residence. It was in a wonderful position overlooking the sea on Babbacombe Downs Road. Across the road form us was the Cliff Railway and the road leading down to Oddicombe Beach, quite a steep climb up the zig-zag road. There was quite a high wall between ferry bank and the edge of the road so our large garden was quite private. We inherited a wooden sign on the wall, quite a large sign, which caused much amusement. It said "Ferry Bank House of rest for tired girls and business women".

We were looked after by a Warden and Domestic Staff, one of whom was a cook. Depending on their size, the rooms held two, three or four or more students. There were four of us first years in my room, which was on the first floor at the very end of the corridor and having a glorious view of the sea, looking out towards Teignmouth, Dawlish, and on to Lyme Regis and Weymouth. We were in this room for the whole of our first year.

We were quite a contingent of youngsters from Monmouthshire who caught the train, which travelled from Manchester to Torquay, getting on it at Pontypool Road station. It is rather fun that, in this year, 2005. I am in close touch and good friends with two who were on this train and two years ahead of me at College and who were also living at Ferry Bank.

Torquay during the years of the Second World War was a restricted area and made up of Residents, College Students and RAF Cadets in their I.T.W Evacuees. The hotels along the front at Babbacombe and further inland at hotels near the part contained RAF Cadets. The little theatre at the end of the Downs at the top of the road leading down to Babbacombe bech was used by the RAF for large meetings and for theatre groups who came down to 'entertain the troops', like ENSA.

We shared the South Devon Technical College with Devon students as our work place and wither cycled, walked or took the bus from St Marys Church each day for out lectures or practical sessions. Our teaching practice was taken in schools all over South Devon from Teignmouth to Ashburton to Plymouth as well as locally in Torquay nad Paignton. For onr of out T.P's three of us went to Plymouth. It may have been during our second year as we taught Home Economics. We went to Plymouth each week, we would travel down one afternoon and stay in the Domestic Science Centre where two D.S. teachers lived. We would teach the following day either in the centre or in a school in Plymouth. The D.S. Centre was in Looe Street about half way down on the right hand side. The street led down to the Barbican from where the Mayflower sailed.

I have a recipe for sponge cake called 'Looe Street Sponge', a war time recipe using no eggs except dried egg. I tried making it recently and it was quite reasonable, using viniger and bicarbonate of soda to help to make it rise.

Of course we got to know a number of cadets in the ITW based at Babbacombe very well. Most often we initially met at the Milk Bar over a drink in the evenings and then saw them as they too went back and forth to lectures. One of the flights living at the Sefton Hotel, D Flight, in 1942/43 we got to know very well and always supported them in their football matches and other activities. We accompanied them to some of the entertainments put on by ENSA in the theatre at the other end of the Downs.

Although Torquay itself did not suffer large air raids like some to the Baedeker towns these were often raids which we came to call 'Tip and Run' raids as perhaps two or three planes would fly in quickly from over the sea, get rid of their cargo and leg it for home. I recall quite vividly three occasions, which I shall relate. I am uncertain in what order these might have happened. One day, with three friends and our four RAF cadet friends, we were walking down the road to Oddicomble beach when around the corner came two planes with their machine guns blazing. The cadets threw us to the ground under the trees before we knew what was happening. None of us was hurt, but it was quite a shock. The other two instances were more severe.

One Sunday afternoon when the children were at Sunday School in St Marys Church a tragedy occurred. A plane came in a nd dropped a bomb on the building and there were many casualties. (Someone has side that a plane crashed on the church, but I am uncertain which of the two was correct).

The other occasion I feel must have been a Sunday as I was in a congregation in St Mary Church when the vicar went into the pulpit at an odd time during the service and said, 'If there are any doctors in the congregation would they please go immediately to The Palace Hotel'. There was movement and a general murmur.

The Palace Hotel was well known to us and a Convalescent Home for RAF Officers. It had received a bomb in the middle of it. Everyone was so sad after all they had gone through.

Although war time, our social life was quite happy. At Christmas time before going home at the end of term we had a College Ball. The first one I remember well. It was held at the hotel at the top of the street in St Marys Church. Our partners were invited from The Palace Hotel, how cleverly foresighted our College staff were. I remember those of us going to the ball being gathered together and told that our partners would have received various injuries from their flying accidents. When we met them we were not to register anything different from meeting anyone, whatever their appearance might be. Even then you had to be strong no to show any reaction. My partner had lost both hands and the rounded stumps were almost healed. Some were very badly burned around the face and head. It was good for both lots of youngsters to treat each other normally.

One other incident I recall. Another student and myself had helped an elderly lady who had tripped and fallen in the street and we took her home. She happened to be a member of Torquay Lawn Tennis Club and to show her gratitude she invited us to the Tennis Club one Sunday afternoon to an exhibition tennis match to make money for the Spitfire Club. The two players were Dan Maskell and Tony Mottram, both, I think, in the RAF. A lot of people were gathered there when two planes came in quickly from the sea. We looked up cheerfully as we thought they would be two Spitfires also coming for the exhibition until we saw the black crosses on the wings. We scattered under the trees. A bomb came sailing out of the bomb doors; it seemed to float initially before we hid ourselves. We found out later it had dropped beyond the row of houses we could see above the tennis club. The tennis restarted and the day continued as usual! Looking back on that time there were 'incidents' but life went on. We worked hard, we studied, we read and we also enjoyed our leisure time. In the summer time we played a lot of tennis, we swam and we cycled miles at weekends. We often cycled to Brixham and went further afield to Buckfastleigh and once to Widdecombe in the Moor. I recall when on our way home we reached high ground and could see in the far distance a church spire. It was St Marychurch church and it looked so far away.
We sat and sewed in the garden at Ferny Bank. We walked over the cliffs to Sunday tea at Maidencombe with our RAF friends. They were so useful to us too, for we did laundry work at College and needed to practise on items we did not possess. We learned to iron shirts, to starch collars and to clean and press trousers. Our particular I.T.W. was obviously well turned out. Saturday evening dances were a must. A group of us would go together to Torquay by bus and had planned to go to a dance at the town Hall or, more up-market, at The Pavilion. Of course we would meet an RAF cadet who would escort us home and usually we would walk all the way, as by then the buses had stopped running. It is important to note that in those days one always felt safe, one was looked after and kept from harm. (I write this in 2005, when I feel so sad for all the young of today who dare not enjoy their young days we did when we felt so safe.) We made many friends. The cadets went on from us to Motspur Park, Manchester, from where they went to Canada or Southern Rhodesia to continue their training to become pilots and navigators in the RAF. I wonder how many survived to enjoy 'civvy street, after the war.

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