Peter Hart

Head teacher at Litcham High School (1978- 1993)

I was appointed Head of Litcham High School from January 1st 1978. I came from Cambridgeshire where I had been Vice Principal of Linton Village College, a community college which included a comprehensive school: my post at Litcham was to establish a new comprehensive school within the buildings of what had been Litcham Secondary Modem School as part of Norfolk's reorganisation of its schools.

Several of the existing teaching staff were successfully appointed to senior posts within the new school. Edwin Speakman was appointed Head of Humanities and John Clifton Head of Craft, Design and Technology, posts they held throughout my headship. Margaret Cross was appointed Head of English before retiring in the mid 80's. Tim Sutton-Day, Head of Mathematics and Mike Walker, Head of Science remained for a time before moving on to posts elsewhere. Vivian Singh was reappointed Deputy Head, a post he held until retirement in 1988 and Julian Cason retained his responsibility for Special Education Needs until 1992.

The school developed as a highly successful comprehensive school with an excellent reputation. Its staff worked very hard and the examinations results gained by its pupils easily matched the best in the County. Students were sought by employers and a high proportion moved on to further education and later to universities. Harry Hazelhurst, who taught as second in the Science Department contributed significantly by developing ideas enabling appropriate students to mix and match examinations courses leading to both academic and vocational qualifications across a number of subjects. He led work in the county in this field. During my time at the school some students also benefited from practical link courses at the Norfolk College of Arts and Technology, King's Lynn (now the College of West Anglia) for part of the week with some staff exchange between the School and the College. Clifford Dixon the College Principal was very supportive of these courses and joined the Litcham High School governing body.

The school became well known for the quality of the staff it could attract and to its staff development with several teachers contributing significantly to its thinking. A number successfully gained promotion to other schools, usually as heads of departments, like Lynda John (Religious Studies) and Elizabeth Jackson (Drama). David Jones (English), Michael Palmer (Mathematics) and Graham Tyrer (English) were promoted to heads of bigger departments in larger schools in Norwich, Cambridge and Warwick respectively. Between 1988 and 1993 four members of the senior staff were appointed as heads of comprehensive schools - Glyn Ottery to a community high school in Somerset, Linda Hudson to a community high school in Leicestershire, Rosie Allen to a high school for girls in Nottingham (returning to Norfolk in 2002 as Head of Hethersett High School) and Geoff Mitchell to a high school near York. It is interesting to note that when Geoff Mitchell and Rosie Allen were appointed deputy heads in 1988 there were three hundred applications for these posts! Another interesting career progression was that of Chris Perry who was appointed Laboratory Technician. She subsequently showed an interest in adult education. She is now the Area Manager for adult education for a large area of north Norfolk and is based in Fakenham. Sue Cara who was appointed Adult Education Centre Head at Litcham went on to a County post with responsibility for Community Education and now has a very senior post of national significance.

The High School had nine feeder primary schools in 1993. These were at Litcham, Mileham, Great Dunham, Beeston, Beetley, Brisley, Great Massingham, Harpley and Weasenham. Of the two other primary schools which were open at the time of reorganisation in 1978 the school at Gressenhall had closed and been incorporated into a new school at Beetley and Whissonset had closed due to very low numbers.

A significant educational development in the early 1980's was to establish School House, a listed Queen Anne house on the High School site, as an education development centre for the area accessible by all ten schools. This provided facilities for primary and secondary school teachers to work together on curriculum development, courses for teachers, opportunities for children to come together from the wide catchment area and provide a resource bank which could be shared by all of the schools. This development had the full backing of Frances Roualle, Chair of the County Education Committee who helped identify funding. Rod Elsegood was appointed as Co-ordinator of the Centre with Mary Gray as his assistant. He was soon joined by Robin Gregory as Tutor Librarian who ran the integral large exchange library for the area and new bookshop assisted by Margaret Frost. Margaret is now in charge of the High School Resource Centre, rebuilt in 1993. The Development Centre became the headquarters of the Litcham Area Federation of Schools, which it served, and I chaired its management committee throughout until my retirement. In 1986, however, Colin Way, Senior Inspector of Schools in Norfolk, supported my secondment to the University of East Anglia for a year to start a Master's Degree research project into the continuity of education for children from age 5 to 16 which the Network had developed. This work included research in schools in other parts of East Anglia and was completed in 1989 with the award of an M.Ed in 1990.

Of the support staff Peggy Munro, School Secretary of the Secondary Modern School (wife of the late John Munro Librarian of the Fakenham Library) successfully took on the extra responsibilities associated with the establishment of the new school. She retired in 1980 and Marie Fulcher was appointed in her place. Marie remained in post throughout my headship as his exceptionally hard working PA. She experienced significant changes in her work as the school grew and developed in the 1990's by which time she had become Senior Administrative Officer with a significant staff of her own including Mary Kinnaird and Win Woodward. Her earlier computing skills from the banking world proved invaluable as new electronic systems, which we now take for granted, revolutionised both teaching and administrative tasks.

In 1978 Stanley Graver had retired as Caretaker and his assistant Gerald Fulcher replaced him. He too remained in this post throughout the 1978 - 1993 period jealously ensuring buildings and their surroundings were maintained to a standard much-envied elsewhere. The standards, which he set, became required of Norfolk County Services when all cleaning was handed over by the Local Education Authority to this separate company in the early 90's. Arm Bane a senior member of Mr Fulcher's team became the school team leader for NCS on site. Grounds maintenance also passed to another branch of Norfolk County Services at this time and Grounds man Roger Hazell found his responsibilities extended to include nearby primary school sites.

The important task of helping keep several hundred pupils safe at lunchtime was greatly supported by Ann Bane, Carol Campbell-Smith and Dorothy Joyce the Senior Supervisors. Good school meals play an important part especially where children travel quite long distances to school. Joan Bowden helped satisfy this need as Kitchen Supervisor and after her retirement her assistant, Pam Charlton, kept up the good work with new ideas of her own.

Despite its rural location with a very high proportion of students having to travel long distances to and from school there were rarely any problems with arrivals on time day after day. The school usually remained safely open even in poor weather conditions. All this was due to the professional approach of local Litcham-based school bus contractor Keith Carter and his team of drivers many of whom had links with the school going back many years.

The Chairs of the school governing body included Albert Church, the proprietor of Comer's Garage in Litcham who provided distinguished leadership throughout the reorganisation period of the school and subsequently until his retirement in the mid 80's. The other Chairs were David Holland, a local farmer, Richard Bailey, the Litcham Postmaster who remained totally dedicated despite serious illness and the Rev Brian Cole, Rector of Great Dunham.

The strong community Links developed by the school led in 1990 to the publication of the Litcham Leader, a community newspaper which attracted contributions from individuals, groups and organisations in the area, as well as containing school news. There was a dedicated section devoted to the work of the Litcham Museum and Amenity Society based in the village with contributions organised by Ron Shaw, its Chairman. The Museum provided excellent source material for teaching, especially in the humanities with Ron and other local people with long memories like Alfie Knock bringing exhibits to life.

Following my retirement in 1993 I continued with voluntary work in education. In 1994 he helped found the independent Norfolk School Governors' Network, which supports the work of school governors across the County and gained a non-voting place on the County Education Committee as its representative. He is currently Vice Chair of the statutory County School Organisation Committee which is involved with any changes or reorganisation of schools in Norfolk Most recently its work has included the detailed reorganisation of schools in the Great Yarmouth, Stalham, Long Stratton and Swaffham areas. I am now member of a `think tank' which considers PFI (private funding initiative) schemes for school development. He is also a governor of two schools in the Norwich area.