Nethersoles School
Very little is known about the construction of the original stone school that was erected on the site of the present day Nethersole Centre. The only surviving document relating to it is a building specification dated 31 May, 1638. Like the Abbey school, the Nethersole school was co-educational, with a class each for the boys and girls of the Parish. Although both boys and girls were taught to read, it seems that only the boys were taught to write; the girls were taught needlework.
According to Sir Francis's will of 1655, 24 children from Polesworth were to attend the school, 16 from Warton and 10 each from Dordon, Freasley Hall and Stoneydale (all of which were then part of the Parish of Polesworth). The numbers were to be evenly divided between boys and girls. In the same year he set up a trust to maintain and run the school.
The Trustees of the school had it completely rebuilt in 1818 and this building continued to be used as a school until 1973. Renamed the "Nethersole Centre", the building continued to be used, but by the 1980s the school had fallen into a severe state of decay. Under threat of demolition, the school was saved thanks to the intervention of Polesworth Parish Council, which secured the loans necessary to pay for the extensive structural repairs.
On a smaller scale, a fund raising committee was set up, which succeeded in raising the money necessary to equip the restored Centre. The building is used today for a variety of youth activities, including a playschool, Brownies, Beavers and dancing classes.