| Description | This collection concerns the Federation of Malaya Teachers' Training College, Kirkby Fields, which took its first intake of students on 2 Jan 1952 and is comprised of 2 elements: material relating to the Kirkby College Alumni Association of Malaysia and the works and correspondence of Hilda Margaret Whitaker née Hodge.
The premises had been built as a Royal Ordnance Factory workers' hostel on land sold to the Ministry of Supplies by Lord Sefton during the Second World War. From 1946-1951, the site was utilised by Liverpool Corporation as an Emergency Teacher Training College until 1951 when the Ministry of Supplies, via the Secretary of State for the Colonies, offered the site for use as an educational establishment. The offer was accepted by the Department of Education of the Federation of Malaya Government and more than 1900 students from a wide range of backgrounds attended and were awarded teaching certificates accredited by Liverpool University, until the College's closure in 1962. The College is significant in Malaysia as the place where it was first announced, on 07 Feb 1956, that Merdeka – Malaysian Independence – would be achieved on 31 Aug 1957.
Due to the continuing narrative of the history of the site, it is recommended that this collection is viewed alongside other collections concerning the development, relating to Herman Greenhough's training at the Liverpool Corporation Emergency Teacher Training College and the R.O.F. Hostel. |