St. Edwards Boys Home, Coleshill.

You may recall that we put up a report in here last year of this well known site - the original report is linked with this photo below. And very recently AltDayOut and Sshh also did a great report too.

But please read on first if you intend to go look at the old report now.

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Our feeling throughout our entire exploration that day was one of gloom with a very marked degree of depression. You may recall from the report that the home was eventually closed when the priest in charge was arrested and jailed for the systematic abuse of several children, and he eventually died in prison after being de-frocked by the Catholic Church.

Hardly surprising then that we thought the place had a bit of a bad atmosphere.

Imagine my surprise then today when we received a posting in our own urbex website's guestbook from someone who had been a resident at St. Edwards in the late 50s and early 60s...


"I was in St Edwards from 1958 until 1965 and I have some very good memories from my time there. I do not like the way you are showing St Edwards as a depressive and gloomy place. For me at that time it was my home and the other children were my family. People tend to report the bad things in life but forget or do not want to know that there is another side to it. The nuns were generally correct and they looked after the children very well. There were exceptions and sometimes they were strict but that was not very often."

It would appear then that St. Edwards had been a happy place, efficiently run by caring people and the rot only set in with the last priest before the place was closed down.

Well Done by you folks for posting that, there’s usually a good side to most of these places, but the wicked perverted bastards who did unspeakable things to vulnerable children is what they are, and will continue to be remembered for. That you have been able to put a more positive viewpoint from someone who experienced living there is informative. Thanks.

It has to be done in the interests of fair representation after all but I still stand by my feelings in that place, it was horrible and really oppressive. We didn't know about the Uncle Groper-esque connotations until after the explore and yet we both found the place felt horrible. Thanks for your comments.

TeeJF said:

It has to be done in the interests of fair representation after all but I still stand by my feelings in that place, it was horrible and really oppressive. We didn't know about the Uncle Groper-esque connotations until after the explore and yet we both found the place felt horrible. Thanks for your comments.

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i had the very same feeling about this place so did my wife who refused to wander much further than the entrance. again, we didn't know about the buildings past either

that's really interesting that we aren't the only ones to feel that way. The guy who contacted me seemed as though he was offended by me saying it but you feel what you feel and that's that. Thanks for your comments.

Too easy to let a few bad apples spoil the barrel isnt it. I too have happy memories. Yes, the nuns were strict, but now, all these years later, I wonder what exactly was wrong with that? They taught me self discipline and the value of hard work - something that schools arent allowed to insist on these days in case some little treasure feels that their human rights are infringed merely because someone insists that homework is handed in on time. I only ever met one priest who seemed to me as if he enjoyed the beating of boys, but even now, I don't think I blame him. After all, if one is shoe-horned into a totally unatural lifestyle, (ie priestly celibacy that is not even a requirement technically) you are bound to damage some folk beyond their ability to cope.

whitelaw said:

I too have happy memories.

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Another objective set of comments on the home, thanks for taking the time to add them to the discussion. You are correct 100% in what you say about the discipline. I view the current state of affairs re school and punishment, parents and punishment, society and punishment, as bordering on the farcical at times. We got the cane if we even walked across the lawns in the school yard and if that was what you got for minor infringements - as big a shock as it was too the first time you fell foul of it - then you can imagine what you got for more serious discipline issues. That said you very quickly learnt what was and what wasn't acceptable and as a result there really wasn't much trouble at our school and the punishments were rarely actually administered! People forget that harsh discipline does not neccesarily mean beatings etc are happening all the time, the power of deterrant is much stronger. Similarly corporal punishment does not automatically mean that sadistic teachers are given free reign to indulge their urges... if a kid isn't misbehaving he isn't going to get a swift clip round the ear. I think, as with all things, it's a question of balance, but now as a society we seem to be so intensely "pink" that we have lost touch with reality... when it's more desirable for "Little Johnney" to express his vile nature even when it means he is inflicting real violence or being disruptive, rather than his being taught with a short, sharp shock that there are other people in the world with as much right to enjoy their lives as him... well...

But I'm ranting.... I expect I'm going to attract a lot of criticism for this posting but hey, that's what healthy debate is all about!

This thing about St. Edwards that we felt, and others too have expressed much the same thoughts as us in conversation, was an immense and oppresive sense of gloom and depression. It's interesting too how negative the locals are to the building, they don't seem to wish to see anything done with it, preferring instead the prospect of it being bulldozed despite it actually being a rather pretty building. I am a firm believer in the idea that buildings can retain "atmospheres" or "echoes" of their past and we wondered if the intensly bad issues that came to light shortly before closure have imprinted.

Another contributory factor we both felt you may perhaps shed some light on. We saw a lot of evidence that there had been a lot of disabled children at the home - there were several lifting frames and a wheelchair left behind for example. That made us feel that many of the children may have been abandoned because they were disabled. And the idea of such a thing was very disturbing to us. Is there any foundation in that idea?

Anyhow that's only our feelings and I'm perfectly aware that a cloudy day, a bad argument the day before, even a dose of indigestion, are all also likely culprits in the "feel factor" state of mind stakes!

Thanks again for your observations and making them public.

All best wishes...