No.5 - Memories - First day at school - Nightmare!!!

I was born at my grandparent’s house in Midland Road, Swinton, on 22^nd November 1949. It was here that I spent most of my life until June 1954 when my parents' names moved to the top of the Council house waiting list and we were able to occupy a house at the bottom of Park Road opposite Swinton Park. During my time at Midland Road, I had very little contact with other kids (apart from my brother, Roger, who was fifteen months younger than me), except on a Sunday morning, when my mother took us to Sunday School at Bridge Street Methodist Church which stood over the other side of the canal bridge. I spent the summer of 1954 getting used to our new environment at Park Road, and there were one or two other children to play with in that area. At that time the intake age at Swinton Fitzwilliam School must have been 5 years. My mother probably thought that meant I'd have to wait until after my birthday on 22^nd November 1954 before they would accept me at school. 

There is one horrible day I remember well. The new term must have already started. It was maybe days, weeks or even a month or so into it when my mother and father took me up to school to put my name down for starting. On entering the main doors, my mother went off to the right to Miss Horsfield’s room to sort out the admin, while I stayed with my father in the entrance area looking at different play toys. I clearly remember a tubular steel rocking horse painted pale green. Suddenly, my mother came out with Miss Horsfield and signalled that we were all going along the corridor. I must have sensed something was not quite right. Pointing to the entrance doors, I told my parents that this was the way we had come in - my childish logic deducing it must also be the way out, unlike the direction we seemed to be now moving in. As we went along the corridor, the first classroom on the left was opened up - Miss Sheridan was the teacher - and I was shepherded into it like a lost sheep. I don’t remember exactly what followed, except that my parents had gone and I was overwhelmed with tears and a strong sense of insecurity. This did not seem a safe place to be! At break I do remember being on my own in the playground; full of feelings of depression and unreality, I was a lost little kid in a strange world. At dinnertime I put my coat on ready to go home. My father and brother were supposed to be collecting me, but there was no sign of them. A kind dinner lady came over to me to see what the problem was and took me to the front school gate where I saw dad and my brother. I didn’t eat anything at dinner time, and afterwards my dad played cricket with me in the park to take my mind off things. Thankfully, education and induction into school has vastly improved over the years. For me, however, the whole of that first year was not a good experience, leaving me with an ongoing feeling of insecurity which has since affected me on many occasions when presented with  similar situations. A positive change came about in my second year with Miss Milnes as teacher. Things seemed to pick up during that year. Also, we had moved houses again - this time to the bottom of Valley Road, backing onto Creighton Woods. A long back garden, a dyke at the bottom and a children’s paradise for me and my brother to explore.