Myers Grove Comp in the 60s

[Asaw 10]

I remember Trevor Ford who was at Myers Grove met him again a couple of years back (Derek Yeardley)

[John Ford 10]

Yeah he lives in ashbourne now, seem to remember Trevor mentioning you when we were younger will pass your comment on

[zakes 68]

A list of teachers frum 1964/5 [1 & 2]

[desy 10]

Furniss 

soar

Jones later Prof Mel Jones

Milner

Hunt

Saunders

Miss Smith

Mrs Haycock

Priestly

Wardle

Hill

Yates

Copley

Miss Rutherford (Tasmanian)

Smith

 

 

 

 

[FIRETHORN1 58]

I went to Myers Grove between 1969 and 1974 and although I did reasonably well and left with a decent number of "O" Levels, I didn't really enjoy the whole ethos of the school and was happy to leave.  On the plus side, it was brilliant for facilities, with loads of playing fields, purpose-built  gyms, science labs, properly equipped domestic science rooms etc, but on the other hand, it was terrible school.

It was meant to be a comprehensive, but tried to be a grammar school - and ultimately failed to be either. If you were one of the more academic kids (which I was deemed to be) they assessed you after your first year, called you "the grammar school stream" then educated you differently for the rest of your time at the school. We so-called brighter kids did less subjects like games, PE, woodwork,  needlework, cookery etc - and more of the so-called academic subjects, like maths, languages and sciences. We were constantly told that we were "better" than all the other kids in our year group and I always felt very uncomfortable with this, because most of these so-called "inferior" kids were my friends - kids from my estate, kids I'd been in primary school with - basically normal kids who were no better, or worse than me. The kids who were assessed as being not very "academic" were basically just thrown to the wolves - they had these kids out sweeping the playgrounds,  repainting the lines on the playing fields and sports courts - basically just writing them off and condemning them to low wage futures when they were only about 13 or 14 years old.

 

There was always a horrible sense of snobbery and elitism pervading the school - for which I still blame the then headmaster, William Hill..... a total head-in-the-sand snob, who really should not have been in charge  of an early, flagship comprehensive school, during an era when the old 11-Plus system was being abolished and a good education was meant to be the right of the many, not the privilege of the few.

 

I remember most of my teachers from my school years - some were nice,  many were not very nice at all. I tended to get on best with my English teachers - because that was my best subject and they liked my way with words! I'm listing a few teachers who taught me  below - but making no comment on what I thought about them ...  for fear of being sued for libel or slander....even now... 45 years later!! 😁

 

Headmaster - Mr Hill

Deputy Heads - Mrs Hedley, Mr Forsyth, Mr Smith

Year masters  - Mr Vinson, Mr Wardle, Mr Furniss

Religious Education teachers - Mr Vinson and Mr Wardle

English - Mr Dubberly,  Mrs Gunn, Mr Pointon, Mr Allen 

French - Mr Sheridan

German - Mr Barnaby & Mr Blaby

Latin - Mr Smith

Chemistry - Mrs Meek and Mr Magri

Physics - Mr Elliott

Drama - Miss Turner

Music - Mr Sampson

Maths - Mr Sorby,  Mrs Hopkin,  Miss Wiseman and Mr Beaumont

Geography - Mr Waugh & Mr Howarth

History - Mr Grinter and Mr Ibbotson

Needlework and cookery - Miss Bennett and Mrs Steel

Biology - Miss Evans and Mr Herringshaw  

Games/PE - Mrs Sherwood, Mrs Singleton, Miss Nutbrown and Miss Carrington

 

I also remember a very weird and strange member of staff called Mrs Hipsley.  She was a very scary character to we adolescent girls -  a very, very odd woman, with an expressionless. heavily made-up face and a very rigid, hairsprayed hairdo. She didn't seem to teach anything or ever be in a classroom - she just seemed to lurk in corridors and outside classroom doors - pouncing on us and punishing us with detention if she thought our skirts were a bit too short or that our tie-knots were not properly done up!

Edited July 20, 2019 by FIRETHORN1

[ArhLass 10]

Mrs Hipsley! Looked like she had a cat curled up on the top of her head 😱

[mickyb47 0]

On 19/06/2012 at 09:22, babydaisy1 said:

Did anyone attend Myers Grove in those years ? Mr Wardle was my year tutor and I began first year in 1D2...Would love to hear from anyone with a story to tell !!! )

I went to Myers Grove in 1960.We  were 1 of the first school up there.Morley Street.I think there were 2 others started around then .Upperthorpe and I think the other was called St.Georges.Mr.Jackson came from Morley Street with us.In the first few weeks there was a raid by the police.At that time there was only the lower school and they searched everywhere, classrooms,stores,dinning room ,even the toilets.We found out later that someone had stolen cigs from somewhere and brought them into school.They did nt find anything but later that day in the bottom floor toilets 2  of the toilets were block by tobacco. There was also a teacher called Mr Wharton who taught  re.He came from Morley Street also.He turned up1 day for a lesson  and we notice he had 2 odd socks on.From that day he was known as Eli Oddsocks later shorten to Eli. O happy days.

[mickyb47 0]

On 10/01/2013 at 10:38, lebourg50410 said:

Hi

I was there 60 to 64 although the first set of kids arrived in 59.

Think these kids came from Bole Hill school perhaps.

Billy Hill was I think a grammar school head and when he got appointed to MG one of the first comp's he was determined to run it as a grammar school hence all the sports pitches were marked out for rugby. The kids weren't allowed to play football.

Now this as you can imagine didn't go down too well and one night someone took an axe to one of the rugby posts and chopped them down.

He (Hill) also insisted the staff wear "batman" capes.

Some of the staff.

Billy Hill Head.

"Jet" Wray dep head.

Wardle "satchmo"

Sanders / Sanderson... I forget

Haydock Felt very sorry for her daughter who attended. Think she got bullied because of her mother

Monkeman nice guy who took woodwork.

Osgathorpe Metalwork

Jackson who took art

A very nice young teacher who took French. All the boys drooled over her.

Mrs Price?

A pair of thugs who took pe?

A Mr Jameson also a nice guy

Furniss Loved himself and told tall tales all of us convinced were utter bull...p

I'm sure there's more that I've forgotten.

Would love to hear the experience of the first 59ers.

I was there from around  59.Came from Morley Street school.Mr Jackson came from there as did Mr Warton R E.  I remember Mr Hill ,Mr Wray and  I think there was a girls head,Mrs Hattersley if I remember correctly. Osgathorpe was ex army I think he started a hiking club and took some of us out in to Derbyshire on Saturdays.Good times.

[mickyb47 0]

1 minute ago, mickyb47 said:

I was there from around  59.Came from Morley Street school.Mr Jackson came from there as did Mr Warton R E.  I remember Mr Hill ,Mr Wray and  I think there was a girls head,Mrs Hattersley if I remember correctly. Osgathorpe was ex army I think he started a hiking club and took some of us out in to Derbyshire on Saturdays.Good times.

I also remember Miss Jeffrey's.She was our music teacher and Mr.Sutherd was history.