Kidderminster Year of Being A Resident

Towards the end of 1968 my husband had to complete a year's site experience and his placement was at Kiddie.  We left our home in Kent and moved up. After searching for rented accommodation we were lucky enough to be able to rent a council flat on the 11th floor of the blocks of flats down at Hoo.
We moved in and I went to the job centre looking for work. They had nothing and I was surprised when they told me I could sign up for unemployment pay.  Every Friday I would join the queue to sign and collect my money - I hated this as I did not like being on the dole.
I applied for a job I found in the local paper with Thompkinson Carpets - I was thrilled when I was given he position to assisting Mrs Dawes the personnel officer.

I worked in the office which was in the gate keeper's lodge. One of my weekly jobs was writing names on the cards used for the staff to sign in and out. There was an office block away from the factory but those girls did not mix with the lowly factory staff.

Because we started early in the morning there was a breakfast available - Wednesday being my favourite when hot potato butties were available. I was also regularly sent into the factory and was able to see how carpets were made I always found it fascinating to see the various stages of the carpet process.
Coming from the south I noticed how men did not swear in front of women and if you happened to appear and they had sworn they would be very embarrassed. Also very noticeable to me as a southerner was that people would greet you as you passed by - not something done down in the south.

On one occasion I arrived at work in the morning to find a huge queue of foreigners - we were looking for night workers for the weaving shed and word had got out, and an enormous number of applicants had turned up. A lot of them did not speak English, so we had one applicant who could who helped us with the interviews.
Keith who was in charge found a major problem as there was a religious caste problem where one caste would not work with the other - so we had to make sure they were not put next to each other.

I remember Geof Meacham, a security officer who realised I was being harrassed by another man working there and would keep an eye out for me. I believe one of the directors was Jeff Davies but could be wrong about the surname.

I also took my driving test whilst in Kiddie, managing to pass on the second try.

Being so high up in the flat we had great views and across the big roundabout they used to try to drive cars up a sloping field.  We could see the lights of the football ground, but unfortunately could not see the actual ground.  The railway viaduct was not far away so there was plenty to see from the flat. We saw more snow whilst up there, getting stuck in one of the local car parks.  We also went out and visited many towns and villages.

I loved my job up there and was very reluctant to return south when my husband's contract came to an end.

Kiddie will always hold a special place in my memory and for some years after I would love to see carpets that I knew had been produced at the Thompkinson factory. They were quite distinctive and I would see a pattern and then look for the manufacturer and would be pleased I had been correct in my prediction that it was one of their carpets.

The flats we had lived hit the national news some years after when they were evacuated because they were considered not safe because of their type of construction.  

I still keep an eye on the Kiddie football results and when I have seen flooding taking place in the local areas I always remember visiting them.

I have not been back for many years and no doubt it has changed a lot but for me the wonderful whirring and chattering of the looms, the smell of the warm wet yarn in the dying area and the friendliness and good hearted staff I worked with will hold a special place in my life.

I would like to come back and see what happened to the flats, what is there where Thompkinsons used to be and see if I can find shops I used to visit.