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St Johns C of E Sparkhill

ed smith

master brummie
Hi any of you out there attended here between 1955 to 1961 after failing the 11+ i attended Golden Hillock whilst the remainder of the class went to Moseley Mod or various Grammar schools. I lived in Newton Road ,and can only recall one other pupil from Newton Road who attended at the same time and that was Leslie Ann Robinson.School was very basic with a couple of semi brutal teachers one was famous for throwing the blackboard rubber at you for any transgressiojn during class,oh happy days
 
Hi Teddy, I remember that well, I got my legs slapped more than once! Do you remember the scottish country dancing and the climbing frame in the playground - health & safety would have a field day with that! Lesley.
 
Hi Country Mouse
Thanks for the reply
Oh the joys of Scottish dancing with Ms McGregor i think it scarred me for life being as even now i have no synchronisation between arms and legs for fear of retribution and ridicule,also can still taste the chalk
I have not been called Teddy since i left St Johns it was a name i was not keen on even family now only call me Ed or Edward if i`ve done wrong.LOL.
Excuse me for asking but because of the fact you called me Teddy and your name being Lesley it begs the question are you the Lesley Ann Robinson from 130 ?
 
Hi Ed,
Yes, I am Lesley from 130, we moved to Hall Green after I left St Johns and went to Harrison Barrow Girls' Grammar in Acocks Green.
I can still remember my first day at St Johns, standing on a chair next to Pat Bishop, in Mrs Mannion's class, sticking cotton wool on sheep.
My children would not believe me when I told them that the caretaker used to come round and stoke up the fires in the classrooms in the winter and that we paid 3d for cocoa instead of milk!
I also used to get shut in the kitchen(?) a lot - spent too much time gazing out of the window lol!! I think that was Miss Millington (top infants)
 
I was at St.John's from 59-62,when my Dad died.Do you remember I think Mrs Cameron -she used to bring Edinborough rock back for her class.I was at school there with Richard Trout,Jane Petifer and Elaine Allan.
Barb
 
Hi Lesley
I`m so glad it is you as i went on Friends Reunion? a couple of years ago and my sister Pat,you might remember her told me that she thought you were on there.I left to go to Golden Hillock,not enough brainpower to go to Grammar school, the only one out the class if i remember rightly to end up at Golden Hillock.Tell your children about the Scottish ladies favourite weapon,the yardstick 3ft of terror,but for sheer accuracy the rubber was supreme. I can recall being milk monitor and carrying the craye up 2 flights of stairs such an honour and privilege !We stayed at 127 till old enough to leave home and get married,twice in my case i now live in a small village in West Somerset on the coast a far cry from Newton Road.
PS remember the Sandlands ?
 
Hi Ed,

My first home, although very brief, was 81 Newton Rd. Sparkhill. We're back in Brum now, but I used to live by Williton West Somerset and then in Minehead. So probably not too far from where you are.
All the best to all ex Newton Rd. folks.

Ann
 
Hi Ann
i seem to remember you mentioning your Nan living at 81 on another thread and yes i am not that far from Williton and to be honest would never consider going back to Brum to live even though i have only been down here 5 years,but dont get me wrong i think Brummies are the most maligned people in the UK but we seem to be tarred with Black Country folk and their awful accent !.We meet quite a lot iof Brummies in Somerset and is great to hear a good natural Brummie twang
 
Ms McGregor! I started at St.Johns in about 1971 and she was there then, always teaching classes older than me as I recall,,,, and Mr Beasley who used to stand at the front in assembly and turn over the big sheets of paper with the words to the hymns on! I remember sitting crosslegged on the floor, picking scabs off my knees (must have fallen over a lot!). St. Johns isnt the St.Johns we knew any more is it?
That lovely playground with the lump of tarmac in the top left corner, where we used to try to get to first to sit on! And those railings along the right where some daft kid would always get his head stuck!
Lovely days!
 
Recently my mother passed away and I found some pictures of my school days in her stuff - I attach Mrs McGregor's class photo! I can still Scottish coutry dance to this day!
 

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Reading earlier posts, I notice Lesley Ann Robinson mentions Mrs Manion; I think this is a photo of that class; with Lesley being second from the teacher on the right and Ed Smith being second from the right on the back row. Other names I think are Robert Baxter third from the left of the teacher; Andrew Hilton next to the end of the front row on the left, Bernice Brown second from the left of the middle row and pssibly a Joy and Christine in the middle of the front row to the right.
 

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Ed couldn't have been all arms and legs, here he is starring in the football team line up of 1961-1962; guessing some names - it's been a long time -
Back row Mr Beasley, ?, ?, Barry (?), Robert Dalby (?), Paul Forrester the goalkeeper, Christopher (?), Ed Smith, Robert Baxter, ?.
Front Row: Michael Thomas (?), Andrew Hilton, Roger Parnell (?), Iain Adams, ?, ?, Ed Taylor.
I think we lost every game, but one which we drew, for the two years I played but I did score a goal!
 

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And some others ...
 

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  • football 1961.JPG
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  • Miss Ellis's class.JPG
    Miss Ellis's class.JPG
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  • infant class.JPG
    infant class.JPG
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  • Mr Beasley's class.JPG
    Mr Beasley's class.JPG
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  • Mrs Davidson's class.JPG
    Mrs Davidson's class.JPG
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  • Mrs Davis's class.JPG
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Perhaps you could select one and add all of the names ...? The infant one seems the largest; who is that in the teacher's chair?

All the Best

Lancashire Lad
 
I attended St John's during the forties, then went to Formans Road Secondry Modern.
I was also in the choir at St John's church & was given time away from school to be in the choir at funerals.
Mrs Mannion was a teacher then and Mr Ree's was the Headmaster. School was closed for a few days during the great snow fall in the1947 winter. Mr Cowley was the caretaker.
Great days.
John Bishop.
 
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How lovely to see these - I do have all of them (not the football ones obvoiusly!) & my mum wrote the names on the back.
Lesley
Hi Country Mouse, obviously we were in the same class; I'm in the mirror image position to you in the Mrs Manion photo - two from her right in the front row, Iain Adams. I was milk monitor with Ed (Ted) and remember struggling up the stairs with the crate - one winter the little silver tops were half an inch above the top of the bottles as they were all frozen. Also remember having to put the plasticine on the fire guard for it to thaw out and become pliable! Mr Rees was still the headmaster when we were there in the late 1950s and early 1960s as was Mr Cowley! Don't remember Mrs Millington though.
 
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