St Anne's Childrens' Home c1960s

This is me holding my ball
From the private collection of Noel O'Conner
Group at St Anne's c1960s
From the private collection of Noel O'Conner

I was at St Anne’s Childrens’ Home in the early 1960s and have happy memories of my time there.

I have read the many comments posted by others who had been at St Anne’s and wanted to share these photographs with them.

Hope to hear from anyone who remembers this time. Maybe you can recognise yourself or anyone else?

If you recognise anyone or can share your memories of this time, please leave a comment below.

Click on the photographs to open a large version in a new window.

Comments about this page

  • I would be interested in more information on St Anne’s Childrens’ Home from the WWII period, if anyone has such info? At this time it was in Buckingham Place, opposite Compton Avenue, and suffered during a bombing raid, such that it closed down and moved soon afterwards. Where exactly did the bomb land? The 1946 Brighton Bombing Map indicates that the bomb fell on the West Hill pub (previously the Belle View) at the junction of Buckingham/Howard Place. But the pub shows little signs of a rebuild? Other accounts suggest that the bomb fell in Compton Avenue. Does anyone have any info?

    By Peter Groves (06/11/2012)
  • That’s good that you have kept these nice photos of your days at St Anne’s, Noel. Thanks for sharing them. Quite a few people who have made comments in these pages were there at around that time so I hope you get some responses.

    By Pat Benham (14/11/2012)
  • The little boy holding the ball, it looks like me – Josephine Benyovits – hiding behind him, and my sister Michelle, with dark hair in a fringe, in the middle. Can anyone give a year, please?

    By Josephine Benyovits (11/03/2013)
  • The pic of this little boy was taken at the front door of Woodside. I used to love the coloured glass panels inside. When the sun came through our hallway it looked like raindows. We had a little hamster called Minka, someone fed it a toffee… I buried her outside Clarmont under the Virgin Mary shrine and collected daisies to lay. Does anyone else remember our front room where we all sat to watch the black and white telly?

    By Josephine Benyovits (14/03/2013)
  • I was here with my brother and sisters Anthony, Anglea, Rosina, Tina and me Karen. Angela was rushed to hospital and went into a coma lucky she made a recovery while here, my brother and I were used as extras for the film Oh What a Lovely War while we were in the home. Does anyone else remember this?

    By Karen Cronk formerly Routledge (12/10/2013)
  • You will find more in another thread on St Anne’s Children’s Home further down the page where you found this item. Check out the message from Veronica Tumber (08/02/2012) for reference to the film you were in.

    By Pat Benham (29/10/2013)
  • My younger sister Maggie and myself were at St Ann’s 1963 onwards. Not sure how long we were there. 

    By J Devlin (12/08/2014)
  • I was at St Anne’s from 1966-1970 and loved every minute of it; lots of happy times. I remember Rosina and was also in the film Oh! What a lovely war.

    By Julie Lenane (08/02/2015)
  • I was there in the early ’60s from my recollection with two of my younger siblings. 

    By Paula Cox (15/09/2017)
  • I was at Cottesmore Senior School from 1957 to 1962. I remember that there were children in the school who came from St Ann’s. I did not have anyone that I remember in my year but this may jog a few memories. This is my maiden name in case anyone remembers me.

    By Kathleen Deschenes (26/01/2018)
  • I write on behalf of Lina Dennison who was born in 1935 and lived in the community at St Anne’s in Buckingham Place from an early age. She was there at the time of the bombing and has detailed recollections of the event which she would be happy to share with Peter Groves. Lina remained in the convent community until starting work. She would love to be in touch with anyone who remembers her. Though alert and lively, with a memory that puts mine to shame, she is not a user of computers and has asked me to help her.   

    By Duncan Campbell (09/02/2018)
  • How lovely to hear of Lina. I remember her very well and named my second daughter Lena because I thought of her when choosing. I wanted to name her after someone from St Anne’s I knew when growing up. The photo I have which was taken in the day-room with Mr Cocheeni has Lina in it and have shown to my daughter.  I am so pleased she has reached a good age and wish her all the best. Would love to hear further.

    By Jean Williams (30/04/2018)
  • Lina was delighted to hear from you, Jean, and would like to get in touch personally. She visits Brighton frequently and, if you are still in the area, would love to meet up. For understandable reasons, she does not wish to share her contact details on an open site (and I’m sure you’d feel the same) and I’m hoping that the website editors may have thoughts about a safe way of facilitating contact between you.

    Sorry but we have too many requests like this. We are all volunteers and do not have enough time.

    By Duncan Campbell (10/09/2018)
  • I can see in the picture of the children with the nuns that both my sister and I are in it .I was in Brighton to take my daughter to an open day and I have never been to what was St Annes but now is a budist centre . I was only 2 years old when I first went there with my sister Rosa who was a year older than me. I wish to get in touch with some of the children who where there at the time . I am of Greek Cypriot decent and want to check the records of how I actually ended up in St Annes . Are there any records held about us and why we ended up there . This is something that I have never asked my mother and I don’t really want to ask her now . She is quite poorly at the moment. There was another Greek brother and sister sibling group at the same time that we were there and I wish to make contact .

    By E. Georghiou (28/10/2019)
  • My sister and I may be in the main group picture we were there from early 60’s till early 70s our names are Anna &Rosetta Capaldi

    By Anna Capaldi (26/12/2019)
  • My aunt is Mary Whelan. Mary taught us a card game called Capaldi ! She said you taught it to her. I wonder if she is in this picture ?

    By Vicki Willden-Lebrecht (13/07/2020)
  • Hi, I think I may have been at this place in the mid 60’s are there any records that I can look up?

    By vincent peter naylor (15/10/2021)

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