Stoke (Council) School (Briton Road & Annexe)

Stoke Junior School Photo 1955? Mr Lewis's class - me front row fourth from left.

Stoke seniors photo taken down at the annex - me in the front row with white pumps after Alan Montgomery dropped a paving slab on my toes during a "lets find some insects" project with Mr Hickey - obviously Health and Safety never came into it then?

Same group different year - anybody recognise themselves?

Briton Road from 1953, Caludon 1959-1966 Segrave then Mowbray. It was not the best time of my life either. Fortunately, things got better and now I can look back and say I did learn something from the teachers I feared and hated. You might remember me as "Bongo".

@David Seeley-Jones I hope your memories of Mr Lewis are more favourable than mine. The only time I received corporal punishment during my entire time in education was when he was on playground duty. I arrived on a school bus that was late and I was still talking to a friend as we walked into the playground after Mr Lewis had blown the whistle. On returning to Miss Hall's class after assembly we were instead directed to Mr Lewis's classroom where we were made to stand on a chair while he methodically smacked our legs. I later found out that I was partially deaf and would not have heard the whistle (I am now profoundly deaf and use a cochlear implant). It would have been in 1956 and you may have witnessed our execution. Seeing the photograph renewed my resentment of the occasion.

Hello everyone, first time poster here Here is a Stoke Secondary Modern class photo of mine taken on 05 July 1968 in the Briton house 'playground'. (The girls toilet block and the junior school are in the background). I spent two years in Briton house and two years in Roman house, and left at easter 1971. I was previously at Gosford Park infant and junior school. I'm third from the left, third row back. I only remember a few names as time has dimmed my memory. The teachers I remember are; Miss Harper (my last year form teacher), Miss Woodford (Deputy Head), Mr (Taffy) Watkins (Briton house master, games and maths), Mr Hurst (RE, art and TD), Mr Aria (maths), Mr Rainbow (science), Mr Lewis (science), Mr Mortimer (geography), Mr Doherty (metalwork), Mr Bailey (music), Mr (Pop) Forson (we only had him for swimming. Ex Spitfire pilot I believe). The headmistress when I started was Mrs McDermott, when she left, Miss Woodford took over as temporary headmistress before Mr Beveridge took over as headmaster. John P

What a wonderful picture, Birdman, thank you! The school and the playground just as I remember them from when I was in junior school in the early 1970s (well, the bits we can see!). So, was Miss Harper a secondary school teacher back then? If it's the same Miss Harper I recall, then she became my third-year junior teacher (that would be year 5 nowadays), and remains my favourite of all the teachers I had throughout schooldays.

Hi all, So many of my chums went to either Stoke, Briton Rd I knew it as or Caludon. I'll never know if the scholarship did me any better or worse. I certainly missed out with my local chums. My cousin, Elisabeth, two years older than me, was at Stoke, now lives in Canada, a retired headmistress of a high school there. Her name Elizabeth Grierson, complete with pig-tails. Anyone remember her? Thank you for the memories. Pictures & narratives. Brill.

Hi Rob I don't know if it was the same Miss Harper or another (sorry!). Looking again at the photo, I recall that behind us there was a line painted on the ground which separated us from the junior school (we were absolutely not allowed to cross). In the snowy winter of 1968/69, the junior school and ourselves had giant snowball fights across the line during our breaktimes!

Smile!!! I've just rung someone, enquiring if a certain young lady on the latest photo was them. I wanted to propose to her, but unfortunately it wasn't her. Blow!