A ‘very special’ head’s legacy lives on in pupils
TRIBUTE TO NUN WHO HELPED SET UP AND LEAD CITY SCHOOL
A “VERY special” former head teacher’s legacy will live on through the school she helped set up – and the thousands of students she taught.
Sister Norah Lester, who was head of Sacred Heart Catholic High School in Newcastle from 1976-1988, died on January 1 after a short period of illhealth.
During a varied career she worked everywhere from schools in Malta to Wormwood Scrubs prison, and left a lasting mark on the community in Fenham, Newcastle.
Born in 1935 in Kirkham, Lancashire, Sr Lester taught in the Sacred Heart Primary School, Fenham, in the 60s, while studying for a degree in history at Durham University.
She spent time teaching in Malta and at Digby Stuart College, in London, before returning to Fenham to become head of what was then Sacred Heart Grammar School in 1976.
A year into her post, she was called upon to help amalgamate a number of different schools into what became Sacred Heart Catholic High School.
Pat Martin, 81, from Newcastle, worked as head of lower school and then deputy head under Sr Lester, and says she was both an inspirational teacher and a wonderful friend.
Mrs Martin said: “She was a very special person and I was privileged to work so closely with her. She had to amalgamate five different schools, over three different sites, all over the six-week holiday. The challenge was immense, and I can’t imagine anyone else who could have done what she did.
“She was very charismatic, she had an incredible memory and attention to detail, but it wasn’t just her organisational ability, it was the relationships she created with everyone.
“She established an ethos at that school which meant a great deal to staff, to pupils, to parents; she was a real part of the community. “Recently I visited the school and the atmosphere is just like what she created: the sense of mutual respect between teachers and pupils was something you felt as soon as you walked in.” Sr Lester served as head at Sacred Heart for 12 years, and spent one final school year teaching part-time and studying for a diploma in multinational education and careers guidance. Her friend Mrs Martin says she is still “fondly remembered” by families in Fenham – many of whom now send their own children to the school she once led. “She was very firm, but she was very fair, and the fun and the friendship was a huge part of life, we all worked very closely together,” she said. “She’ll be remembered by so many people. I meet parents, grandparents, who are now sending their daughters to Sacred Heart, and they all have great admiration for her, and lasting memories. It’s amazing to know how her work is being continued, and she’ll be working even harder in heaven now.” After leaving Newcastle, Sr Lester dedicated herself to teaching in Wormwood Scrubs Prison, a job she found “humbling and fulfilling”, continuing to work there until the age of 65. She spent much of the early part of her retirement working in the community in London, before moving to the care home where she spent her final days. There, Sr Lester was often visited by friends she made while teaching, as well as by her two nieces.