A new start for Forfar pupils

A historic day in the history of education provision in Angus occurred on this date 57 years ago.

The start of term at a new school in Forfar on August 16 1965 is captured by author David W Potter in his ever-interesting tome Forfar On This Day, which was published last year.

The historian writes: “Back to school is always a traumatic and exciting experience for children – and teachers – but today was even more so.

“It was the first day of the new Forfar Academy in Taylor Street. It had been long promised, often by local politicians who had not lasted long enough to see the eventual completion of the school, and here it was.

“It was a wrench to leave the old academy, which had a great deal to be proud of but was frankly too small for the baby boomer generation who had been born in the late 1940s and early 1950s and had thrived and prospered under the National Health Service.

“The first day – indeed the first year – was rather chaotic as some things were not quite ready yet. One recalls, for example, that the seats in the library were not very comfortable, and that there were no signs on the toilet doors, something that caused embarrassment on occasion.

“There was also the problem of getting around for no one seemed to know how to get anywhere, and one was particularly sorry for the wee ones who were totally bewildered.

“There was no point in asking older brothers or sisters for they were similarly lost. But rector Mr Alex C Gillespie, a kind and dedicated man, took pains to apologise particularly for the curtains and blinds not always being there, which in a glassdominated building was a considerable disadvantage and disincentive to learning.

“Yet the advantages were immense with all the latest equipment and a sometimes breathtaking view of the Grampians. Pupils could actually watch the weather arrive!” If you have a story to share about a first day at school we’d love to hear from you.