About Our School
Wilberlee School is a Junior and Infant Community School. It is a mixed school, which serves children from a wide catchment area in the age range 4+ to 11 years. The recommended maximum pupil limit for the school is 77. In September 2014 the school will become part of the Federation of Clough Head and Wellhouse
The school has a long history and can trace its origins back to the National School that was built in 1785 to serve the needs of the village children. This building still remains and can be seen opposite the Parish Church.
In 1845 Upper Slaithwaite Church Mission School was opened at Shred and continued until 1894 when a new Board School was opened at Wilberlee for 160 children. At the time when the new school was built most of the children lived in small farm cottages on the surrounding hillsides and very few children came to the school from lower down the valley. This changed when houses were built along Longlands Road. Later the Longlands estate was erected. Now most of the children arrive by the school bus which comes up the hill from Slaithwaite. There are however, a few children who travel from the outlying districts of Scammonden, Pole Moor, Upper Holme, Merrydale and beyond to get to school.
The school building still retains many of the original Victorian features although internal changes have been made in recent years. In 1998 class 3 was extended to the rear of the school and this enabled a library and ICT area to be created upstairs. During the summer of 2000 another classroom was constructed above the existing infant classroom and these were extended further during 2003. There is also a hall, staff room, office and a kitchen. The building is surrounded by playground and there is a pleasant school field to the rear, part of which has been developed as a forest area and beyond that is our new Field of Dreams.