Mr D

Mr D came into school this morning to share with us his experiences of school life in the 1930s. He is 85 but as sharp as a pin with an excellent memory. His grandfather, father, sons and grandchildren have all been to the school and he is passionate that it should carry on for a good few years yet. His memories were fascinating and he answered all questions with enthusiam and interest. How times have changed! He first went to school in 1933. The school building was already 140 years old and sounded dreadful - no running water, no toilets (you went in the woods), no lighting, and not much heating - just an open fire that the teacher sat in front of! Wind howled through the windows and the floorboards were dodgy! Within 4 years of his arriving the school was closed due to an outbreak of diphtheria. Several children died and a site was donated for a new school. The community had to find an eighth of the money. The new school was a 'model' of its kind and opened in 1937 - its delights included indoor loos, running water and a fire in each room plus gas lighting! learning seems to have been mostly English, Irish and Maths and Mr D confessed that he couldn't wait to leave to get to work on the farm. In turn, this new school was condemned in 1995 - it had been built without foundations, using sea sand and became incredibly damp. Our fantastic warm, airy school with all mod cons was finally opened in 2007. And now it's in danger of closure.

Arthouse starts again tonight - we're off to see Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris - a romantic comedy apparently - sounds good for a wet and grey day.