150th anniversary of Shankhill Primary School in North Cumbria

Those associated with Shankhill Church of England Primary School, located northeast of Longtown, marked the significant milestone with speeches, music, a small funfair, and the unveiling of a selection of old photos and newspaper clippings to document the school’s history.

Funfair at the school celebrations (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

Display of old photos and information that documents the school over the decades (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

Attending the event was James Johnson, a 90-year-old former pupil who experienced World War 2 at the school.

He said he started school in 1939 and remembered sharing the school with evacuees who attended for the afternoon.

Also in attendance was 92-year-old Nancy Graham, another former pupil.

Nancy Graham and James Johnson, the two oldest alumni present (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

She said she remembered walking three miles to school with her lunch, as the school didn’t provide food then.

She also remembered going on nature walks with the teacher.

“Then we’d walk three miles home after that, we got plenty of walking,” she said.

“It’s amazing to see what they've done to the school.”

Lynnsey Batey, headteacher, said in a speech: “It’s been a really special year for us already.”

She said a recent Ofsted visit allowed them to show the ‘wonderful school’ and they were ‘really impressed by everything’ including the quality of education.

Ms Batey said: “What they saw was our children, they are remarkable children who absorb the knowledge we give them, and they bring the word happiness to school.”

Julie Minns speaking to the crowd (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

“We're proud to have that word happiness as part of our school vision because you can see today the joy that it brings, it really is special, so thank you for sharing in this moment of celebrating 150 years of Shankhill Primary School,” she added.

Steven Bowditch (left) with David Baxter, who revealed a new plaque for the school (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

David Baxter, 70, is a former pupil and current governor, who said he remembered schools being ‘quite boring’, but enjoyed Christmastime when they did nativity plays.

Most of the governors were present, as well as the ward councillor Tim Pickstone and MP Julie Minns.

Governors and staff of the school, from left to right: Rev Rob Brown, John Greener, Lynnsey Batey, David Vaughan, David Baxter, Steven Bowditch, Stephen Higgs (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

One of the governors, Rev Rob Brown, said the 150th anniversary is a mark of achievement for church-integrated education: “It's a real privilege because the church was responsible for commencing education of children in the country, and this is part of their legacy.”

Stephen Higgs, a governor, spoke on how the event brought people together: “We've had a member of parliament here, we've had the Cumberland councillor here, we've got the local vicar here, we've got everybody who matters.

“The school has tendrils of contracts throughout the whole community, and it's really good to see that the communities come together to celebrate the school's anniversary.

In a speech, Ms Minns said: “I was just reflecting that in another 150 years, we'll have here the great-grandchildren and the great-great-grandchildren of the youngest pupils who have sat here in front of us, so I very much hope that the little school on the hill is still here in 150 years so we can have another celebration.”