Hastings High School Reunion
NOLA MCSWEENEY
On Friday, September 29, a school reunion will be held at The Royal Victoria Hotel in St Leonards between 3.00pm and 6.00pm, This is being organised for pupils who attended Hastings High School for Girls between September 1960 and July 1965 – or until 1967 for those who stayed on in the sixth form. A buffet tea will be served in the Sea Terrace restaurant.
After tea, there will be a chance to mingle and reminisce about your time there and what you have been up to since. Please let anyone else know who was there about the event and encourage them to bring along any photos or memorabilia.
For those not familiar with its history, the school was originally built in 1901 as an infants school on the Ridge, opposite the Borough Cemetery. It was then redeveloped as Hastings Secondary School for Girls in 1912. Partly due to its position far from the town centre, the school had falling rolls in the late 1920s and an attempt was made to raise its status with a name change to Hastings High School for Girls.
This also coincided with a Labour Party report recommending two levels at secondary stage, with high schools (or grammar schools) providing the more academic education. By 1930, the school roll had risen to nearly 200 and a service of dedication was held in May 1933 at Robertson Street Congregational Church. The first head of this school was Miss Commin.
During the Second World War, Miss Commin along with many girls were evacuated to Ware in Hertfordshire. Meanwhile, the school served as a coffin store (in case of emergency), a food store, a community restaurant and a store for ATC equipment!
Miss Commin retired in 1949 and the formidable Miss de Gruchy took over from her. In 1967, work was due to start on modernising the Victorian school. However, serious structural defects were found in the upper floors and the borough surveyor recommended demolition and rebuilding.
During this time there was much controversy over selective and comprehensive education. In 1977, a heated meeting of the Education Committee recommended that Hastings should become fully comprehensive by September 1978: the high performing girls’ High School and boys’ Grammar School became Helenswood and William Parker comprehensive schools respectively.
You can register your interest to attend the reunion with
Valerie Mighall by phone on 01424-830247 or by email at [email protected].
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