BFI

A former royal hunting forest covering over six thousand acres, Epping Forest was preserved by the 1878 Epping Forest Act and formally handed over to the British people by Queen Victoria on 6 May 1882, "for the use and enjoyment of my people for all time".

In 1892, the Ragged School Union, a charity established to help educate the destitute, opened the Shaftesbury Retreat in Shaftesbury Road, Loughton, Essex. This acted as a base for large groups of children from the poorer parts of London when they were taken for days out in Epping Forest very much along the lines depicted here.

For many, if not most, it was their first time in such verdant surroundings, and it is clear that they have been dressed up for the occasion - though many of the children are also wearing cardboard discs around their necks, presumably to aid identification should they get lost.

The film shows large groups of children being paraded through the forest, and then enjoying various pastimes such as cricket and donkey-riding, with the mostly female teachers playing an active role.

Michael Brooke

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