Made with Xara
Vincent School
Vincent Secondary Modern School
The   characters   I   recall   include   Mr   Fox   our   form   teacher   in   the   Maths   Lab.   He wrote   a   book   on   mathematics.      Next   door   was   Mr   Pollard   in   the   Physics   Lab who   was   handy   at   aiming   the   blackboard   rubber.      Along   the   corridor   with   Miss Leavens   was   the   Biology   Lab   in   which   a   fire   once   broke   out.      Out   buildings housed   the   woodwork   and   metal   workshops.      Mr   Miller   was   the   headmaster who   wore   a   traditional   gown.   Mr   Watters   was   the   deputy   head.      Mrs   Wager   was a   Department   Head   Teacher.   Miss   Toley   caught   me   hiding   in   the   Library   at playtime   and   got   me   the   cane.      Mr   Mills   was   the   PE   teacher   who   called   me ‘boy’   and   rapped   his   keyring   on   my   head   if   I   didn’t   get   a   move   on.         There   are other names I vaguely remember, please click here .
Vincent School aerial view (Google maps)
Ex-pupils on Vacation (Photo Friendsreunited)
After   leaving   Vincent,   I   went   on   to   Ealing   Technical   College   &   School   of   Art following   which   I   joined   the   University   of   Life   and   now   the   University   of   the   3rd Age (U3A) !
I   remember   four   highlight   school   outings.      The   first was   to   see   see   Uri   Gagarin   the   cosmonaut   when   he visited    Earls    Court,    London    for    the    1961    USSR exhibition.      Before   that   in   1959   we   were   taken   to see   the   film   Ben-Hur.         The   third   outing   was   to Bledlow   Ridge   in   Buckinghamshire   to   introduce   the basic   skills   of   orienteering.      I   also      vaguely   recall   a visit to the Ford car plant in Dagenham.
My    first    day    at    Vincent    was    a    bit scary    after    hearing    a    rumour    that the   older   Vincent   pupils   carried   out initiation       ceremonies       on       new arrivals.     Luckily     they     were     just rumours   and   I   survived   to   leave   in 1962 after taking my GCEs.
A   new   school   meant   a   visit   to   the outfitters Abernethies   in   Ealing   for   a school   uniform   and   badge.      A   new pupil an a smart new blazer!
There   was   a   pride   throughout   Vincent School   projected   from   Mr   Miller   down through     his     staff     to     the     students themselves      In   return   there   was   an inbuilt     respect     for     the     teachers.       Students   came   from   all   walks   of   life with   the   majority   from   Northolt   Park Estate   where   young   families   took   a pride    in    their    environment.    I    was shocked   when   in   2005      whilst   filming Gareth      Malone’s      ‘The      Choir’      a member    of    staff    described    the    the school   as   being   located   in   a   ‘deprived area’.          How     and     when     did     the authorities   allow   this   to   happen.      In our    day    pride    in    our    school    was reflected     in     our     magazine     ‘The Eaglet’   with   articles   about   school   life and outings.