Exemption from School Attendance …. to help with the harvest
Elsewhere on the website can be found information about what life was like for children growing up at Hoar Oak Cottage including going – or in many cases not going – to school. Read more on this link: It was clear from the teachers’ log books that many local children living on Exmoor farms often missed out on their schooling due to illness, bad weather and being kept at home to help with agricultural chores like planting potatoes, at shearing time and during harvest.
Recently, on a visit to the wonderful Somerset Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury this ‘Ministry of Education Exemption Certificate’ was noted on display. Intriguing to see that in 1946 children were still ‘permitted’ or perhaps we should say ‘expected’ to be exempt from school attendance to help with agricultural duties. Of course, this certificate is from during the WW2 years so that may have had an influence but it would be intriguing to learn if there are any such Exemption Certificates for any of the Hoar Oak children. In the 1940s, the occupants were the Hobbs and then the Littles. Time for a bit of searching!
