Parents' National Educational Union facts for kids
The Parents' National Educational Union (PNEU) was an organization started in 1887 in Bradford, Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom. It was created to help teachers and families who taught their children at home (called homeschoolers). The PNEU followed the special ideas about education developed by Charlotte Mason. She co-founded the group with Emeline Petrie Steinthal. In 1890, the word "National" was added to the name. That same year, the PNEU started a monthly magazine called The Parents' Review. It shared ideas about learning and raising children, with Charlotte Mason as its editor.
A Look Back: PNEU's Journey
How PNEU Grew and Spread Its Ideas
After the PNEU started, a woman named Henrietta Franklin became very important to its growth. She met Charlotte Mason in 1890. Mason believed that "children are born persons." This means she thought every child is a unique and important individual from birth. She also believed "education is the science of relations." This meant learning should connect children to many different subjects and ideas.
Charlotte Mason wanted education to focus on the whole child. This included helping them love learning, grow spiritually, and develop good character. By 1892, she opened the first school in London based on these special ideas.
In 1894, Henrietta Franklin became the PNEU's secretary. She traveled to major cities in America, Europe, and South Africa, giving talks about the PNEU's methods. She even used her own money to support the cause and wrote articles to promote it. Her hard work helped the PNEU become well-known across the country and even around the world.
PNEU's Overseas Work and Closure
In 1978, a new part of the PNEU was created called the World-Wide Education Service (WES). This service helped schools for company employees and homeschooling families who lived in other countries.
The last local PNEU group in Birmingham closed in 1984. The main PNEU organization itself closed five years later, in 1989. The job of helping overseas families was then given to the Bell Educational Trust in Cambridge.
Charlotte Mason had also started a special school in Ambleside in 1892. It was called the House of Education and trained governesses (teachers who taught children in their homes). This school was renamed Charlotte Mason College in 1938. Later, it joined with other colleges to become part of the University of Cumbria. The program that trained teachers at this site ended in 2010.
