| AdminHistory | Administrative History
The East London Auxiliary of the National Sunday School Union was formed in 1814 as an interdenominational society to help to promote Sunday Schools in the East London area.
The Auxiliary was at its peak in 1875 with 136 Sunday Schools in its Society and with a total number of some 41,979 children attending these schools. A celebration of the Sunday School Union was held in Victoria park in 1880 with an estimated attendance of between 80,000 and 100,000 people; many of the processions that took part that day were led by bands from all over the East London area.
Numbers started to decline in 1902 when the schools East of the River Lea formed the West Essex Authority. This had many negative effects for the ELA, and numbers of children attending the schools and the Churches signed up to the ELA started to decline. For example in 1906 27,000 children attended the schools but within ten years less then half this number were attending.
Attendance stayed fairly stable then until after the Second World War when numbers again started to fall. In 1935 there were 46 Churches who belonged to the Auxiliary ( see following list) but in 1964 this number had been drastically reduced to only 13 schools, this left only 1028 children in total attending Sunday Schools which were part of the ELA.
During this period the Auxiliary adopted many new constitutions resulting in some name changes. On its formation it was known as the "East London Auxiliary Sunday School Union". In 1936 it changed its constitution and was then known as the "East London Auxiliary National Sunday School Union". In 1968 and 1969 the ELA again changed its constitution and was known as the "East London Auxiliary of the National Christian Education Council".
After the annual meeting in 1994 arrangements were made to wind up the affairs of the East London Auxiliary due to falling attendances at Sunday School and a loss of interest by churches and the East London Auxiliary of the National Christain Education Council was eventually dissolved in 1996.
SUNDAY SCHOOLS IN THE EAST LONDON AUXILIARY 1935
As listed in the Annual Report of 1936
Hoxton House
Shoreditch Tabernacle
Shoreditch Methodist Mission
Bethnal Green Central
Grove Road Baptist
Victoria Hall
Abbey Street
Bethnal Green Road Congregational
Friends First Day
Memorial Hall, London Street
Nichol Street Mission
Bedford Institute
Old Mahogany Bar
Seamen's Christian Friends
Brunswick (Late Ebenezer)
Love Lane Mission
John Knox
Stepney Meeting House
Lycett Methodist
Stepney Central
Albion Street
Burdett Road Congregational
East London Tabernacle
Latimer
Christ Church, Watney Street
Coverdale
Limehouse Methodist
Piggott Street
Salmon Lane Mission
John Pounds
Cotton Street
Poplar Methodist
Trinity
Emery Hall
Manchester Road (Cubitt Town)
St Pauls (Presbyterian)
Stebondale Street
Bow Baptist
Bow Road Methodist
North Bow Congregational
Old Ford Methodist
Out and Out Mission
Berger Hall
Bruce Road Congregational
Devons Road Baptist
Poplar and Bromley Tabernacle |