Like many schools throughout the UK, St John’s Primary School in Redhill had air-raid shelters constructed prior to World War II. The ones here were of cut-and-cover construction and separate shelters were completed for boys and for girls in 1939.
The grils' shelters are unremarkable but the boys' are notable for extensive contemporary murals. These depict scenes from popular stories, including Robinson Crusoe, Gulliver’s Travels and Robin Hood. A video walkthrough of the shelter, including some Pathe newsreel clips, can be seen on the video link.
There is also a small amount of grafitti in the shelter such as initials and noughts and crosees. Some original features survive, such as bench supports and electrical wiring. The importance of the shelter and its murals was recognised by Historic England in September 2020 when they were listed Grade II.
