I was born on the 10th day of September 1944 at Chalet Corner just four months after the Normandy Landings had taken place. My entry into this World was assisted by my Aunty Bett who was the youngest sister of my mum Jessie . Aunty Betty was just sixteen years old at the time and worked behind the counter at Rapleys Garage at Heath End. The cottage was rented from Dr Morley Fletcher

My Dad at this  time was on active duty in the RAF in Palestine and  India.

I started at Duncton School when I was five years old and immediately was met with some hostility, not only from the head mistress Miss Botting but also from some of the local boys. I presume it was because I was an in-comer and not a local boy, as my mum had been evacuated from her home town of Portsmouth due to the bombing. After showing some of the local boys that I was no pushover, I settled down and enjoyed my early education under the wing of Miss Ratcliffe who I liked.

To get to school, I had to walk about a mile as there was no Southdown Bus Service at that time. Len Donaldson was a bus conductor .

Early memories of school

If you needed to go to the toilets , you asked to go to the Offices ! No, I have no idea why that little building was called that.

Just inside the Offices was a urinal with a pipe running along a black painted wall. Flies settling on the pipe were an attractive target for little boys in short trousers :-) 

To the right of the urinal was the three seater. I wont go into too much detail  but it was rank !

Play time always seemed to involve red coloured beanbags which had to be collected up by a favourite pupil and when the bell rang, we all marched back to the classroom in single file. The playground was tarmac which resulted in lots of skinned knees and the crab apples in the adjoining garden looked inviting but you soon learnt they were inedible.

If it rained, us boys sheltered under the veranda and kicked sparks on the tiles with our boots which were fitted with Blakey’s studs, much to the annoyance of Old Mrs Connor who was the dinner lady in the adjoining canteen.  Liver must have been plentiful in those days and it took me many years before I could ever eat it again.

Miss Ratcliffe’s classroom as well as Miss Botting’s was large and heated by a single coal fire close by the teacher’s desk.  The room was very cold in winter and often the third of a pint milk bottles arrived frozen solid.

I can’t remember what age I moved up into Miss Botting’s class but it was not a good experience. It was evident that she took a dislike to me and often put my down when I was in competition with my two friends, Martin Dadswell and John Connor.

Miss Botting wore bloomers, I know this because they became evident when she climbed some steps to retrieve some books on a high shelf.  She marked our exercise books with a very thick red or green pencil. My book had many red crosses.

To describe Miss Botting , imagine Margaret Rutherford !

The desks were two seaters with a hinged lid. Who betide any child who allow the lid to slam shut. The inkwells were topped up with something that looked like a teapot and it was the highlight of your week when you were allocated a new pen nib and a clean square of pink blotting paper.

Behind Miss Botting’s desk on the wall was a large map of the world and I remember that most of the countries were coloured pink. We were also fascinated by the coloured pictures  in some big books which depicted cavalry charges and early battle scenes.

Also at the front of the class was a large abacus on a stand and we all knew our ten-times tables off by heart.

Sometimes we had singing lessons and Miss Botting favourites seemed to be Little Brown Jug and Polly Wolly Doodle all the Day !

We listened to Longfellow’s poem The Windmill and I will never forget the Alfred Noyes poem The Highwayman and the first verse :-

The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees.
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas.
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding-
Riding-riding-
The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door. 

Of course, being a C of E School, we were marched up to the Church on a very regular basis for Easter, Christmas and Harvest Festival

I had a couple of fights and got into trouble when I knocked out the front teeth of a boy from Graffham. Both respective mums were summoned to a meeting with Miss Botting but I can’t remember the outcome but I had no further bother with regards to bullying and my reputation went before me to Midhurst Secondary Modern School.

Later we moved to 1, Burton Mill Cottage which meant an even longer walk to school. I didn't have a bicycle until I reached eleven.

Mr Taylor replaced Miss Botting when she retired and he took me under his wing and coached me in maths which was my weakest subject and it still is. Despite his generous help, I failed the eleven plus and went to Midhurst Secondary Modern School. My two school friends went to the Midhurst Grammar School.

I had a good education at Midhurst and to this day I proudly display the initials F.E.P. on my business cards.  Very few people have ever asked me with it means and I suppose they think I am a Fellow of some profession or college. 

My sister Roberta attended Duncton School and her daughter, my niece Helen Martin became Head Teacher of Duncton and Graham Schools.

Steve Moorey - F.E.P.

(Failed Eleven Plus)