The Present Teaching Staff.
It need hardly be said that the welfare of any school depends to
a large degree on the quality and devotion of its teaching staff. It
is a good thing to have constant infusion of new blood into the school
in the shape of young teachers who stir us up and stop us older ones
getting too set in our ways. On the other hand, in order to ensure
stability and continuity, it is essential that a proportion of the
staff should be willing to settle down and make their service in one
school the main part of their teaching career. In this respect, we
have indeed been fortunate. Tribute has been paid elsewhere in this
magazine to some of the long-serving teachers of the past. The record
must now be brought up to date.
Mr. Howard Pitt, the present Deputy Head, has, with an interval of war service
in the Royal Navy, been on the staff since 1934. A man of high academic qualifications,
he could, undoubtedly, had he so chosen, have moved on to achieve a responsible
post elsewhere. That he did not so choose has been our gain. From the date
of his return from war service he has been in charge of the Mathematics Department,
and examination results are a tribute to his own teaching and efficiency of
his department. At sixth form level ablest pupils and many of Mr. Pitt's
former scholars are now gaining distinction in various spheres. In addition
to his teaching, his ties with the school have been the closest. He chose his
wife from its former pupils and three of his children have passed through the
school. Some will remember him particularly and with gratitude for the zeal
and devotion with which he has run the school camp for very many years. Not
less valuable has been his skill in framing the school time-table and the tact
and courtesy he has shown towards colleagues who never feel that enough time
is being allocated to their own subject. It is gratifying to know that in the
new school the Advanced Level Mathematics will still be his responsibility.
The Senior Mistress, Miss. M. Mason, started teaching here on the same day
as Mr. H. Pitt and , except for an interval of 4 years between 1937 and 1941,
has been here ever since. During all these years she has guided and taught
most capably the girls in the Commerce classes. Although a Commerce course
in not in common in grammar schools, we have always found it both popular and
useful. Many of Miss Mason's ex-pupils are to be found in local offices:
some have found jobs further away. After Mrs. Winspear's sudden death
in 1968, Miss Mason willingly took over the duties of Senior Mistress and has
continued to carry them out conscientiously and with a praiseworthy regard
for the preservation of good standards of work and behaviour. We wish her a
happy and congenial retirement.
Mention of Miss Mason leads one to remember her predecessor, Mrs. Winspear,
taken from us so suddenly and tragically in the Autumn of 1968. Joining the
staff as Miss Collingwood in 1939 she was a valuable member of the Physics
and Mathematics departments. In 1950 she became Mrs. Winspear and in 1957 succeeded
Miss Peppiette as Senior Mistress. The ease and assurance with which she took
over her new duties were quite astonishing. In dealing with the problems brought
to her, whilst not lacking in sympathy, she displayed a robust common sense
and a down-to-earth attitude which are thought to be typical of Yorkshire people.
The school has been unfortunate in the sudden death of a number of its teachers
in recent years and in none more so than Mrs. Winspear's.
Mr. Parfitt's name has become almost synonymous with
the school's
sporting achievements, particularly in rugby. Every school has its ups and
downs in the sporting sphere but it is remarkable how consistently Mr. Parfitt
has produced teams of a high standard with no more than 250 boys to select
from. Mr. Parfitt's association with Lydney R.F.C. and with the English
Schoolboys Union, of which he is Chairman, has made his name known throughout
the rugby world. Fortunate indeed is the school to have had a man of such distinction
in charge of its games.
If one is looking for a forceful and effective teacher, one need go no further
than Mr. Laycock. It is commonly rumoured that none of his
6th form pupils has ever had the lack of tact or temerity to fail to get a
pass in History.
However that may be, his examination results over the years at both"O" and"A" Level
have been consistently good and often excellent. In recent years, Mr. Laycock
has applied himself to his duties as Careers Master with the same thoroughness
as the teaching of History. It is good to know that he will be in charge of
History in the new school and no doubt insisting on the same high standards
as he always has.
Mr. Barlow first came to Lydney during the war years when Yardley Grammar School
was evacuated here from Birmingham. He liked the place so much that he has
stayed ever since and has been the terror of the late arrives and Mr. Pitt's
right-hand man in running the school camp. His other activities have included
much assistance with school plays in the make-up department, rendering first-aid
to the sick and injured and latterly the organisation of the morning assemblies.
Other long-serving teachers are Mr. Thomas, a former pupil, most of whose life
has been closely connected with the school: a versatile teacher, who has at
different times taught Biology, Physics and Mathematics, as well as giving
a good deal of assistance with games, and who for many years ran the Air Training
Corps Squadron with enthusiasm and devotion: Mr. Northam who joined the English
Staff in 1950 and became Senior English Master in 1957: he has organised his
department with quiet efficiency and in the production of school and Staff
plays has maintained the high standards set by his predecessors: under his
charge the school Library has increased in size, and it is good to know it
will be more suitably housed in the new buildings. Mr. Winspear, who joined
us in 1948 to teach Latin and whose quiet and unassuming manner conceals a
surprising range of interests, such as engineering, car-driving and gliding.
One must not omit mention of Dr. Herbert Howells merely because he is no longer
a member of the Staff. A pupil of the school, he returned here to teach in
1945 and served continuously until he went to live in France in 1970. Highly
qualified academically, he was in charge of the Zoology teaching and more recently
of the Biology Department, which he ran with conspicuous success. He was a
man of many interests and one thinks particularly of his enthusiasm for music
and the valuable assistance he gave the School concerts and musical productions.
All the above-mentioned teachers have been on the Staff more than twenty years,
some for thirty years and some nearly forty years. There are others, of course,
of whom space forbids mention, who have fewer, but still a considerable number
of years to their credit. Though fortunate in the loyalty and devotion of its
Staff, in another respect, as stated above, the school has been unfortunate.
In addition to Mrs. Winspear, Mr. Sands, the Handicraft teacher, and Mr.
Davies,
Head of French, were also lost to us in the midst of busy and active careers,
whilst Mr. Green died as he was on the point of leaving us to take up the Headship
of a Primary School. Another extremely serious loss to the school, though fortunately
not through death, was of Mr. Hotchkiss, who was forced to resign through ill-health
in 1960. As Head of Chemistry and later as Deputy Head, Mr. Hotchkiss had given
many years of devoted service to the school. One had come to rely on his unfailing
willingness, his wise guidance and unbiased judgement, and his departure left
a gap not easily fill. It is good to see him still maintaining a keen and active
interest in the school and still available to assist and advise his many friends
on the Staff.
E. Beeley.
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