Acton In The 1950/60’s

A Memory of Acton.

I lived in The Vale flats from 1953. First in Beech Avenue and then Larch Avenue. I first went to East Acton school before John Perryn and finally Bromyard Avenue, which was later renamed Faraday School just before I left in 1966. I enjoyed my time in the area before leaving to join the Royal Navy in 1967. I remember the shops over the road from the flats. The small post office, the butchers at the end and the bookies where my dad used to go on paydays. I cannot remember any names from school except one girl called Barbara Smith at Faraday who I used to carry her books for her. Good times they were. A good, quiet area in those days. I used to walk to school along Bromyard Avenue with the detached houses on the left and council offices on the right. Past the small church where my aunties got married. The town of Acton was a good shopping area with a small market and the best of all a Wimpey just across the road from the library where my mum would always stop after shopping on a Saturday. We rarely got the 265 or 266 bus from town to the flats, preferring to walk the mile or so. Those were good days. I now live up north in Blackburn, Lancashire with my wife of 45 years, Alison. I have only been back to the flats once in all that time and it looked no different. Smaller than I remember. But in those days we as kids were not allowed to even stand on the immaculate green lawns otherwise dad used to get a ticket from the council. There used to be some old age pensioner flats along Beech Avenue. If anyone remembers either me Leslie, my sister Susan or my mum and dad, called Lucy and Jim Hamilton, please contact me. Hope you enjoyed your time around the Vale flats as I did.