Stoke Heathens

I have a quite vivid recollection of Mr Camwell (I recalled him as Mr Cantwell. Thanks). On several occasions he entertained my sister and I in the cloakrooms at the entrance to the school - we were invariably early arrivals - always clad in tweed cap, faded boiler suit and leather boots. At the time we first met I would have been 4-5yrs, the photograph over 30yrs old and he well into his 50s. The only male in the photograph who resembles my recollection of his stature and facial features is the second on the left. Another person associated with the school that I recall vividly was the warden, Mr Nicholls, a kindly older gentleman who conducted us safely across the road at the entrance to the school. He wore a black peaked hat and a white plastic coat with large buttons.

I attended Stoke Heath Junior School from 1963-1966. Among the teachers I remember were Mr Davies (Deputy Head),Mr Taylor and Miss Webb. The building where we had assembly every morning had a very distinctive smell, I think it also doubled as the canteen. At the beginning of every assembly the same piece of music was played from a record player - 'Morning Mood' by Grieg. I will always associate that piece of music with Stoke Heath School. Of course the old school building is no longer there.I wonder what happened to the old high teacher's desks,surely they were Victorian? I still have an embroidered check tablecloth that I made in the sewing class there.

Hi Petunia, What a coincidence regarding the music. Although I went to Stoke Junior (Briton Road), and not Stoke Heath, in the infants' school we were also led in to Grieg's "Morning" on the record player, and whenever I listen to it over 45 years later it still transports me back to those fun, innocent days. I'm fairly sure they also occasionally played Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, because that also still has the same effect! A memory that still haunts me, though, is that as a shy five year old, standing there in assembly, I was too timid to put my hand up in front of everybody and ask to go the the toilet - so I held on as long as I could before warming up one (or both) of my legs! It was obviously not an uncommon occurrence though, as when my kind teacher, Miss Riley, took me back to the classroom, she opened a cupboard full of spare pairs of shorts!

Well that was funny. I can recall the pairs of little trousers hanging over the rail which surrounded the pot belly stove at the Beaumont Cres. annex to Moseley Ave. school (opposite the old Alvis). Boys as well as girls. It's a good thing times have moved on. No music for us though. Mmmm, 'Morning',didn't they play that on the telly during an interval during the early days of TV (before your time, Rob)

Yes, I remember when in the nursery at Stoke Heath Primary around 1946, if you had an 'accident' they had a cupboard containing spare short trousers. When mum met me from nursery she would know immediately that I had not had a good day, as I had my own shorts wrapped in paper under my arm. Also at that nursery they had camp beds that were only a few inches off the floor, we were put down in them for the afternoon nap.