Free School, Cambridge.

The inscription reads, FREE SCHOOL SUPPORTED BY VOLUNTARY DONATIONS
The Boys School was built on Pound Hill, Castle area, in 1812 and closed in 1924.
Castle End was an area of working class residents, crowded into insanitary houses.
The log books of the school are revealing of the life in the area, most particularly in listing punishments for lateness and absence. Attendance was often affected by the weather. Wet boots dried rock hard in front of the fire overnight and many poor families did not have enough boots for all the children to go to school at the same time. Not a good excuse in the teacher's eyes. A Girls School opened opposite in 1848 and closed in 1930. Many of the girls were absent on Fridays as they had to collect linen from the colleges for their mothers to launder. These days the area has an internationally renowned Art Centre in Kettle's Yard and the Folk Museum which tells the history of Cambridge. The school is now used for accomodation.