Kendall House history
Kendall house a history dating as far back as the early 1900’s. Please read further for the history and this is a rough guide. The information on this page will be subject to change as more information is made available. The regime at Kendall House introduced into the home by Miss Law and Dr Perinpanayagam was more than chemical cosh
The earliest information found on Kendall House dates back to 1925 when a lady Miss Kendall was the main part of the home which didn’t have a name at that time. It was situated we believe in The Grove Gravesend Kent. It was considered to be a preventive home for young girls. Were you in Kendall House at this time?
The home was set up to help young girls and was used for training, teaching,start of employement and the girls given suitable clothes according her needs.
I’m yet to find out what sort of employment was involved or how old the girls were. Perhaps they were trained to work from the premesis or on the outside for others?
In 1929 Kendall House was named in honour of Ms Kendall who was the matron/supervisor of the home and how it was run.In 1946 the original Kendall House was sold and the new premesis purchased in 1946 which was situated in Pelham Road Gravesend Kent.
It’s suffice to say that Kendall House saw the war through and times must of been very difficult when it came to funding and it’s assumed that Kendall House relied heavily upon donations to keep it running. In those days after the war things must of been even harder given the rations during the post war period. Perhaps the girls working was also helping towards the running of KH. It officially re-opned in March 1947 and it’s purpose was to provide temporary shelter for women and young girls who werew faced with real needs of human aid and needed accomodation whilst their needs and problems were rectified. The new Kendall House could accomodate nine adults, three babies and two members of staff.
1957 Miss Dorothy Law took the position of head/matron/supervisor of KH and for 10 years ran the home until 1967 when she set off to Birmingham for training in theological studies at Queens college Birmingham and also studied about adolescent girls at Birmingham University.
1968 Miss law returned and re-opened Kendall House only upon her return and her new training she somehow came hand in hand with Dr Perinpanayagam who was a psychiatrist at West Hill hospital. I am yet to find out if the psychiatric teams were involved prior to this date.
In 1964 KH was extended to take on more girls and changed into an adolescent home for girls. During this time Kendall house did not at any stage get given the authority to turn it into a secure unit.
Pin Down a regime well know became part of the structure of KH but worst than that a new regime had been devised between Miss Law and Dr Perinpanayagam where young teenage girls were given drugs to subdue them into compliance. A letter written the British Medical Journal by Dr Perinpanayagam shows that he had chosen ten girls and seperated them into two sets of five, using one drug on one set of five girls and another drug on the other set of five girls. He was constantly taking their bloods and recording the effects of each drug and it’s effects on the girls phisical and mental status.
Were you a girl or member of staff at Kendall House? Girls wantng copies of DHSS reports etc please contact me direct.
Trust No One by Teresa Cooper available on Amazon
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