Ribbons and Holes

I received the latest edition of Have Your Say magazine and read the friends abroad page. In reply to Stan Howard in Australia regarding St. Augustine’s Sanderson Street. I think Stan must be a little older than me, as I attended between 1952 and 1958. However I am sending some photos, which I hope will get a response from other St. Augustine’s pupils.

The first one (above left) is of my class in about 1952/53, I think. I am in the fourth row from the bottom, third on the right, (not counting the headmistress, Miss Gaul) I haven’t got two black eyes, I think my little brother decided to draw ‘glasses’ an a few of us on the photo, note the two boys seated on the front row! Also on that front row, I can remember one of the Leonard boys who lived in Sanderson Street. The little girl on the back row, second from the left Barbara Wilkinson is now my sister-in-law. I remember a few names Dorothy Royle, Irene Watkins, Doris Marshall, Doreen Gandy, and Rosalind Greenhalgh. Can anyone fill in the gaps?

I left the school in 1958, being my teacher, Mrs. Beasley’s first pupil to pass the 11 plus exam and go to Grammar School. She was so proud of me, she bought me a book ‘The Secret Garden’ by Frances Hodgeson Burnett, which remains a favourite to this day.

The second photo (above right) was a class in St. Augustine’s about 1958. My brother Roy Harding, is in the middle row, third from the left. He has circled a few faces on this photo too! I think a couple of the names were Derrick 0liver and Derek Hamnett. The boy next to my brother was Alan Keeling. Does anyone remember any more?

The overriding theme of all these school photos, is how we all looked very similar. Girls with big ribbons and bows in our hair and the boys with jumpers full of holesl
Lorna Gillibrand nee Harding