Age 0 - 21... School Days
Primary School
From the age of 5 (in 1956) I attended Highfields Primary School, in Evelyn Road, Dunstable (since demolished, but the residential road now on the site is called Highfields Close). I walked the mile or so to and from the school daily – sister Sue was in the top Juniors during my first school year, and was no doubt instructed to take good care of me during the walk. When a little older, I recall walking along the Luton Road to and from school with neighbour John Hinchcliffe. Occasionally, we would pop into one of the corner shops en route and buy a few sweets. It was still possible to get four fruit salad 'chews' for 1d (one pre-decimal penny) at the time, though sherbet fountains were a favourite, costing 3d I think. These were a yellow card tube containing sherbet powder and a liquorice tube through which one could suck out the sherbet which fizzed in the mouth.
The school had one class per year group, so must have had around 250 pupils in total. My first class had about 50 children in it, with just one teacher and no classroom assistants in those days… The headteacher was Miss Greenwood, and my first class teacher was Mrs Harries. I can remember a sea of Wellington boots on the floor of the classroom’s bay window, which we were encouraged to bring to school to wear at playtimes. I also remember rolling out hard plasticine on fibre boards, and have a recollection of writing on a slate with a slate pencil, which would ‘rub out’ with a damp cloth – though this may have been at home, not at school.
In class, we sat in rows on flat wooden benches which were attached to the desks. I can’t remember if the desks were attached to the floor. The floor was polished floorboards, or possibly parquet – no carpets or even mats in those days! I don’t have many strong memories of being at Highfields, though I do recall that on Empire Day (24th May), all the pupils were marched around the school playground behind a large Union Jack. School milk was another memory – it was the milk monitor’s job to push a straw through the foil top of every 1/3 pint bottle of milk as they stood in metal crates, waiting to be consumed at playtime. The milk was provided free. I also had school dinners, which cost 5 shillings (25p) a week. Mum used to ask me what I had had for dinner, and my reply was almost always ‘meat, greens and potatoes’. On the classroom wall was a large loudspeaker. It was connected to a radio somewhere in the school – possibly in the staff room or Head’s office. One of the highlights of a school week was to come in early from playtime, then wait for precisely 11.00am, have the speaker switched on, and listen to a ‘schools broadcast’ of a music lesson. I recall history lessons coming via ‘live’ radio too. This was before tape recorders were commonplace!
When we moved to Winnersh in October 1961, I went to school at Loddon County Primary in Earley, travelling there by bus, or, often in the mornings, as a passenger in our next door neighbour’s white Isetta bubble car. My class teacher at Loddon was Mr Griffin. He worked hard with me – I didn’t behave too well at school at the time… and against most expectations, I passed my 11+ exam, and in September 1962, went on to Grammar School.
From the age of 5 (in 1956) I attended Highfields Primary School, in Evelyn Road, Dunstable (since demolished, but the residential road now on the site is called Highfields Close). I walked the mile or so to and from the school daily – sister Sue was in the top Juniors during my first school year, and was no doubt instructed to take good care of me during the walk. When a little older, I recall walking along the Luton Road to and from school with neighbour John Hinchcliffe. Occasionally, we would pop into one of the corner shops en route and buy a few sweets. It was still possible to get four fruit salad 'chews' for 1d (one pre-decimal penny) at the time, though sherbet fountains were a favourite, costing 3d I think. These were a yellow card tube containing sherbet powder and a liquorice tube through which one could suck out the sherbet which fizzed in the mouth.
The school had one class per year group, so must have had around 250 pupils in total. My first class had about 50 children in it, with just one teacher and no classroom assistants in those days… The headteacher was Miss Greenwood, and my first class teacher was Mrs Harries. I can remember a sea of Wellington boots on the floor of the classroom’s bay window, which we were encouraged to bring to school to wear at playtimes. I also remember rolling out hard plasticine on fibre boards, and have a recollection of writing on a slate with a slate pencil, which would ‘rub out’ with a damp cloth – though this may have been at home, not at school.
In class, we sat in rows on flat wooden benches which were attached to the desks. I can’t remember if the desks were attached to the floor. The floor was polished floorboards, or possibly parquet – no carpets or even mats in those days! I don’t have many strong memories of being at Highfields, though I do recall that on Empire Day (24th May), all the pupils were marched around the school playground behind a large Union Jack. School milk was another memory – it was the milk monitor’s job to push a straw through the foil top of every 1/3 pint bottle of milk as they stood in metal crates, waiting to be consumed at playtime. The milk was provided free. I also had school dinners, which cost 5 shillings (25p) a week. Mum used to ask me what I had had for dinner, and my reply was almost always ‘meat, greens and potatoes’. On the classroom wall was a large loudspeaker. It was connected to a radio somewhere in the school – possibly in the staff room or Head’s office. One of the highlights of a school week was to come in early from playtime, then wait for precisely 11.00am, have the speaker switched on, and listen to a ‘schools broadcast’ of a music lesson. I recall history lessons coming via ‘live’ radio too. This was before tape recorders were commonplace!
When we moved to Winnersh in October 1961, I went to school at Loddon County Primary in Earley, travelling there by bus, or, often in the mornings, as a passenger in our next door neighbour’s white Isetta bubble car. My class teacher at Loddon was Mr Griffin. He worked hard with me – I didn’t behave too well at school at the time… and against most expectations, I passed my 11+ exam, and in September 1962, went on to Grammar School.
Secondary School
I attended the Forest Grammar School for Boys, in Robin Hood Lane, Winnersh, from 1962 to 1969. My school days at the Forest were not the happiest of my life, though I have no great complaints, and few enduring memories. The headteacher for my first couple of years was Walter Jackson, once Mayor of Wokingham. He retired, and was replaced by Jack Piercey. Jeff Fanning was the Deputy Head throughout.
I was not a very academic or enthusiastic pupil, but enjoyed Geography, History and Art, which I seemed to be tolerably good at, but I was hopeless at sciences and languages, managing to achieve just 9% one year in a Latin exam. Dad wasn’t too pleased with some of my school reports. I also hated the winter sports, especially being made to run about a windy and muddy rugby pitch, and I wasn't a gymnast either, but I was OK with games played with a small ball, and often stayed after school in summer to play tennis with friends. I was also happy with athletics, and I was a member of the school athletics team for several years. My events were the 220 yard sprint and triple jump.
School plays took place at least once a year, and as we were an all-boys school, it became customary for the plays to be a joint project with the all-girls Holt School in Wokingham. This meant an opportunity to meet and find out a bit about the mysterious opposite sex, so I was an enthusiastic volunteer for a play or two, though I never had a lead role. There was also a Holt/Forest debating society, which I joined in with.
I stayed on at school into the 6th form, studying for three A-levels (though I use the term 'studying' loosely). The 6th form timetable incorporated a good deal of private study time, during which I seem to recall spending a great deal of time chatting with my friends rather than working. My A-level subjects were Art (teacher, Frazer Fulbrook), Geography (teacher Fred Dobson – who later committed suicide – not my fault I’m sure), and English (teachers Don Stamp and Andy Laurence). I enjoyed the 6th form, though didn't work anything like hard enough, and gained low grades for my A-levels. Careers guidance was virtually non-existent, so my future beyond school was never very seriously discussed. My mother was not keen on my idea to become a car salesman... My sister was by this time working as a school teacher, so I simply drifted in the same direction myself. Somehow, I managed to gain a place at Bedford College of Education to undertake my teacher training.
I attended the Forest Grammar School for Boys, in Robin Hood Lane, Winnersh, from 1962 to 1969. My school days at the Forest were not the happiest of my life, though I have no great complaints, and few enduring memories. The headteacher for my first couple of years was Walter Jackson, once Mayor of Wokingham. He retired, and was replaced by Jack Piercey. Jeff Fanning was the Deputy Head throughout.
I was not a very academic or enthusiastic pupil, but enjoyed Geography, History and Art, which I seemed to be tolerably good at, but I was hopeless at sciences and languages, managing to achieve just 9% one year in a Latin exam. Dad wasn’t too pleased with some of my school reports. I also hated the winter sports, especially being made to run about a windy and muddy rugby pitch, and I wasn't a gymnast either, but I was OK with games played with a small ball, and often stayed after school in summer to play tennis with friends. I was also happy with athletics, and I was a member of the school athletics team for several years. My events were the 220 yard sprint and triple jump.
School plays took place at least once a year, and as we were an all-boys school, it became customary for the plays to be a joint project with the all-girls Holt School in Wokingham. This meant an opportunity to meet and find out a bit about the mysterious opposite sex, so I was an enthusiastic volunteer for a play or two, though I never had a lead role. There was also a Holt/Forest debating society, which I joined in with.
I stayed on at school into the 6th form, studying for three A-levels (though I use the term 'studying' loosely). The 6th form timetable incorporated a good deal of private study time, during which I seem to recall spending a great deal of time chatting with my friends rather than working. My A-level subjects were Art (teacher, Frazer Fulbrook), Geography (teacher Fred Dobson – who later committed suicide – not my fault I’m sure), and English (teachers Don Stamp and Andy Laurence). I enjoyed the 6th form, though didn't work anything like hard enough, and gained low grades for my A-levels. Careers guidance was virtually non-existent, so my future beyond school was never very seriously discussed. My mother was not keen on my idea to become a car salesman... My sister was by this time working as a school teacher, so I simply drifted in the same direction myself. Somehow, I managed to gain a place at Bedford College of Education to undertake my teacher training.