Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
are questions relating directly from papers of the 1920s, re-produced by Frost
(1931, 135-6) directly relating to gauged work:
BRICKWORK 2ND YEAR: THEORY AND DRAWING
(1) Give full definitions and neat sketches of the following terms: Skewback, Key-
brick, Gauged-apron, String-course…
(5) What are the following tools used for: Cutting-saw, Pointing trowel, Three-
foot level straight edge, Builders' square, Bevel, Square?
BRICKWORK 3RD YEAR: THEORY AND DRAWING
(2) Draw, to a scale of 1½ in.
1 ft., the plan and elevation of a semi-circular
niche with 4½ in. in thickness in gauged brickwork. Span 3 ft. 0 in.
BRICKWORK 4TH YEAR: THEORY AND DRAWING
(1) Draw to a scale of 1 in. to 1 ft., about two-thirds of the elevation of a gauged
camber or Georgian arch, span 4 ft., face 9 in., soffit 4½ in. On this drawing
indicate the method of obtaining the cutting marks or the templates for the
'Springer' and 'key' bricks or voussoirs.
Following the Second World War, Government Training Centres expanded and
the apprenticeship period and City and Guild syllabi remained essentially the
same as the pre-war format. Though the State was involved in Industrial train-
ing, the Carr Committee Report of 1958 recommended that '…responsibility
for industrial training should rest firmly with industry' (Cannell, 2005, 4). As
the 1950s settled in and extra government money became increasingly avail-
able, more further education colleges began to offer academic and practical
study. Generous local authority grants enabled students to access the city and
town colleges from the outlying rural areas. Far-sighted government funding
allowed craft workshops to be well equipped with a variety of up to date and
good-quality materials, tools, equipment and machinery. Qualified and experi-
enced lecturers were able to provide the necessary depth to fulfil the needs
of both the syllabus and local builders. Despite concerns in the Crowther
Committee Report of 1959 that in the United Kingdom there was a tendency
to see 'education and training' as separate issues (Cannell, 2005, 4), this was in
many respects a 'Golden Age' for traditional apprenticeships.
Working as a senior lecturer at the Northern Polytechnic of London, Hodge
acknowledges the fall from fashion of gauged work, yet emphasises its import-
ance to be learnt for a full rounded craftsman (1944, 164):
Unfortunately the demand for gauged brickwork has declined during the past
three or four decades; nevertheless it is part of the bricklayers' craft and the
apprentice should be prepared to carry out such work for the architect who may
