| Repository | University of Roehampton: Archives and Special Collections |
| Level | Fonds |
| Reference Number | NFF |
| Creator Name | National Froebel Foundation |
| Title | National Froebel Foundation Records |
| Date | 1874-1972 |
| Extent | 50 linear metres |
| Description | This collection consists of the records of the National Froebel Foundation accumulated between approximately 1874 and 1975, donated by the Froebel Trust in 2007. It documents the activities of the Foundation pertaining to the provision of courses of training for kindergarten teachers, the creation of a recognition and inspection facility for kindergartens and the regulation of the teaching of Froebelian methods. The bulk of the collection consists of meeting minute books, reports, student registers, cash books, the lecture notebooks of Joachim Liebschner and publications about the National Froebel Foundation and Froebelian education. |
| Language | English |
| Administrative History | In 1938, the National Froebel Foundation (NFF) was formed from two separate organisations, the Froebel Society for the Promotion of the Kindergarten System (commonly known as the Froebel Society) and the National Froebel Union. These organisations had been responsible for regulating the teaching of Froebelian methods by validating examinations and setting standards for the Froebel Teacher's Certificate, and setting up the Froebelian teacher training college in London, known as the Froebel Educational Institute. The National Froebel Foundation continued to perform some of the functions of its parent bodies until it was formally dissolved in 1975.
Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) was an educationalist who championed pre-school education. He invented the concept and word “kindergarten” and was responsible for the first training programmes for female kindergarten teachers. Froebel opened his first Play and Activity Institute in 1837, which he renamed the Kindergarten in 1840. The foci of the kindergarten were: toys for sedentary creative play (which Froebel called gifts and occupations), games and dances for healthy activity, and observing and nurturing plants in a garden for stimulating awareness of the natural world.
Froebel's ideas and the concept of the kindergarten spread to other countries, including Britain, and in 1874 in London the Froebel Society was founded in order to organise the Froebelian movement in the United Kingdom. The Froebel Society aimed to provide courses of training for kindergarten teachers and to create a recognition and inspection facility for kindergartens.
In 1887 the Froebel Society created a separate body, the National Froebel Union, to regulate the teaching of Froebelian methods. The National Froebel Union did this by validating examinations and setting standards for the Froebel Teacher's Certificate.
In 1892, members of the Froebel Society were responsible for the setting up of a Froebelian teacher training college in London, known as the Froebel Educational Institute. This college was a separate body from the Froebel Society. It was based in West Kensington and moved to Roehampton in 1922; in 1901 it became known as the Incorporated Froebel Educational Institute.
In 1938 the Froebel Society and the National Froebel Union merged to become the National Froebel Foundation, which continued to perform some of the functions of its parent bodies. PARA The National Froebel Foundation was formally dissolved in 1975, though a board of Trustees continued to ensure allocation of its residual assets in accordance with its charitable objectives. |
| Custodial History | In 2013, the National Froebel Foundation merged with the Froebel Trust. The Froebel Trust was originally a part of the Incorporated Froebel Educational Institute. In 2012, the Incorporated Froebel Educational Institute demerged; its demonstration school, Ibstock Place in Roehampton, became a separate entity, and the non-school part of the organisation became the Froebel Trust. It was the Froebel Trust that merged with the National Froebel Foundation in 2013. More information about the Froebel Trust can be found on their website: http://www.froebel.org.uk. The records of the National Froebel Foundation were donated to the University of Roehampton by the Froebel Trust in 2007. |
| Access Status | Open |
| Access Conditions | Open for research |
| Copyright | Copyright Froebel Trust, 2007 |
| URL | https://www.froebel.org.uk/ |
| URL Description | The following links to the Froebel Trust website |