David Moorhouse
Former Senior Structural Engineer with Bradford
Council, David Moorhouse, passed his ONC in
Mechanical Engineering at Bradford Technical
College in the 1950s and then completed his HNC
at Bradford Institute of Advanced Technology in
the 1960s.
In 1952 when David left school at 16 there were
numerous large engineering companies in Bradford, all
with apprentices attending Bradford Technical College.
“I served my apprenticeship at Frederick Fox’s in
Bowling Back Lane. I started at 7.30am, had a half hour
for lunch and worked until 5pm. Then 3 nights
per week I came to evening classes from 7 until 9pm.
I did this for all 5 years of my apprenticeship, getting
my ONC in Mechanical Engineering in 1957.
It was
very hard as there was so much homework which
left little time to see my future wife, Joan. She was
studying a commercial course and everyone we knew
was doing something at the ‘Tech.’ We sometimes
met after classes to go part of the way home together
and she always waited outside if I was doing one of
my exams.
I then did National Service in the Royal Horse Artillery
as a technical assistant working as battery surveyor
from 1958 until 1960. On returning home I went back
to work at Fox’s, moving from the shop floor to the
drawing office.
In 1961 I got a job for the Council in
the City Engineers Department, where I received day
release to go do my HNC at the Bradford Institute of
Advanced Technology, though I still had to attend
College 3 nights per week. Every weekend was spent
working on massive files of homework with many hours
in the study rooms of the Library in Darley Street. I had
married in 1961 but the whole of my life was taken up
with work and study. I was 35 before I finally qualified
as a Member of the Institute of Civil Engineers as in
our day you had to have the experience to back up
your studies. Although I hated doing exams I found
the content of my work all absolutely fascinating.
I began in the Building Office as a Factory Inspector,
surveying all buildings for structure and means of
escape for licences. Then when I got my HNC I
was able to go into the Structures Section. In the
mid 1960s I used to do all sorts of designs and
structural calculations, for instance for the subway
that runs to the National Media Museum, which was
exceptionally complicated in engineering terms. I
handled site investigations and was put in charge of
all Bradford’s demolition, road widening and resulting
reconstruction. As I drive around Bradford now I see
so many examples of my work. I was first call to all
emergencies including fires and gas explosions and
I used to attend court as a professional witness. I
enjoyed the banter and the satisfaction of getting a
job done.
I was offered early retirement when services were
privatised in 1994. I was so well known and respected
that firms constantly approached me therefore I
started a private practice as a consultant doing
structural surveys and design. I finally retired in 2002,
aged 66.
As a day release student we all wore the College blazer
as we were proud to come here to College. After I had
qualified I occasionally helped out at night school if
they were short staffed.”
Photograph by Shelagh Ward