A Long Time Ago !

A Memory of South Ockendon.

I have fond memories of Mardyke. I remember Mr Childs (Headmaster) who sadly died before I left in 1961. We had 48 kids in my class. I used to get in the queue at the beginning of a lesson for help and I never got to see the teacher ever. This went on probably all term. I don't think I learnt much but I did enjoy the sports side. I remember Miss Powell Jones (or that may have been in Culverhouse Girls) and of course Mr West. He was my brother's teacher (Clifford Richards). My teacher was Miss Cole from Wales. I haven 't kept in touch with my school pals, coming from London I don't think we were part of the pack. I know most of us were very poor and I certainly had second hand clothes. My friends were Beverley Dudley, Sylvia Himphreys, Brian Riley, Helen, can't remember her name. Robert Wakeman, Linda Waugh and many more. My nan used to live in one of the prefabs next to the shops. It was a bakers. Those prefabs were neat and they had a nice garden too. We didn't live to far away in Callan Grove.