Bond Street 1920 Full School Photo
Bond Street 1939 School Photo
By 1964, Burton Grammar School had reached what might be thought of as its heyday.
The new pavillion and extension to the sports fields, including a running track, had recently been put into service. Never before had the school achieved such accademic success. For the first time, over 100 pupils enjoyed ‘O’ level passes, several students were being awarded Open Scholarships at top universities and around 30 students a year were successfully gaining university placements, sometimes out-performing the nearby Repton Public School. The sun was shining!
This was two years before the very first mention of a re-organisation of secondary education. It would have been inconceivable at the time that the Grammar School System, with its centuries of tradition, was soon to be abolished.
On a slightly sad note, the year also saw the death of Miss Mitton who had been the Headmaster’s Secretary for twenty-two years, spanning several Headmasters having been originally appointed by Mr Moodey. She was almost considered ‘part of the furniture’.
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In happy times, another complete school photo was commissioned as a celebration. A mischievous Paul Wheildon at the far right, timed his pose to perfection, escaping the eye of the photographer until after it had been printed.
In 1960, the first full school photo was commissioned for the new school at Winshill. William Gillion had taken over as Headmaster from the longstanding Mr Pitchford less than two years earlier and was now well established.
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The pavillion had not yet been built and the extension to the playing fields was ready for development. At this time, Staff ‘At Home’ evenings were first established offering for the first time, the opportunity for parents to meet with members of staff to express any concerns or discuss their children’s progress.
For the first time, there was some disquiet about the 11 plus selection tests with calls from some quarters that they should be abolished since they offered unfair advantage to more able pupils (?!). Times were changing and the first foundations of the slippery-slope had been laid.