Wolverhampton school celebrates 300th anniversary

Staff and pupils dressed up in a range of fashions from across three centuries from traditional Victorian wear to hippy attire.

The school, in Sedgley Road, Penn, Wolverhampton, was founded in 1714 under the will of the Reverend Charles Winn, a vicar of Penn.

The original school, built in Springhill, has long ceased to exist, with the school moving to its current home in 1871.

Pupils have been learning about the school throughout the ages and at a special party pupils ate cake, sang Happy Birthday, and let off balloons in the school's colours of burgundy and sky blue.

Reverend Ben Whitmore, who dressed in an historical clergy outfit, spoke to the pupils while parents brought in old photographs and shared memories.

One school governor ploughed through the archives in Lichfield and Kew Gardens and discovered current head teacher Katy Kent is only the school's 21st head over the 300 years.

An advert from 1874 was unearthed appealing for a headteacher who would be paid £60 a year to teach the four rules of arithmetic, reading and writing and with a wife who could teach sewing and knitting. Each child would pay 1p.

Mrs Kent, who dressed up as a pre-1914 soldier, said: "The children had a fantastic time and I'm sure it is something they will cherish and remember."

The school is Wolverhampton's only outstanding primary school and is ranked 115th in the country.