The Cherry Jumpers: For All The Saints

by Christopher Bird (Author), Christopher Bird (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2013

  $3.25

  To commemorate the school's 75th birthday on 1st November 2013, the Governors have commissioned former Headmaster, Chris Bird, to write this account of the story of the school. We read through seventy-five years, three geographical locations, six Headmasters and hundreds of human stories set within the context of the Second World War, Catholic education in England, the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, the advent of the Second Millennium, advances in technology and the political/social changes that have characterised our modern times. There is a sense of chronology but the episodes overlap; an overriding theme of continuity through change. Numerous whimsical and hilarious anecdotes are peppered throughout the book; countless former pupils, staff, governors and parents are referenced; the meandering footnotes are a delight to read in themselves; and, with the lightest of touches, the writer has succeeded in providing tantalising confidences into the business of managing a school with rich insights into the psychology of learning and teaching whilst never forgetting the crucial, human 'core values' provided by the children themselves. For anybody connected to All Hallows - and for those who are not - this is an entertaining, informative, instructive book on the history of a school in its context of time, place and ethos.