Description: It's date of construction was 1852, and was founded by J Smith Wright. The idea of ragged schools was developed by John Pounds, a Portsmouth shoemaker. In 1818 Pounds began teaching poor children without charging fees. Thomas Guthrie helped to promote Pounds' idea of free schooling for working class children. Guthrie started a ragged school in Edinburgh and Sheriff Watson established another in Aberdeen. Lord Shaftesbury formed the Ragged School Union in 1844 and over the next eight years over 200 free schools for poor children were established in Britain (another ragged school was founded, slightly later than the one seen here, next to Sneinton Market on Gedling Street and can also be seen on the web-site)