Hall Green Primary School old friends meet again

Former staff and students of a Black Country school were re-united at an event held to celebrate its 70th anniversary.

More than 80 former pupils and staff, past and present, came together for the reunion at Hall Green Primary School in West Bromwich.

They were entertained by the school choir and street dance club, looked at old pictures and took a tour of the classrooms to see how it had changed.

Halls were decorated with bunting and balloons and a 70th anniversary cake was enjoyed to mark the occasion.

Former pupil Jane Taylor nee Lavender, aged 60, used to live in Hall Green Road and used to walk to school with her brother Anthony and sister Ann.

Mrs Taylor, who now lives in Pedmore, Stourbridge, attended the reunion with friend and former school pupil Muriel Jefferies.

She said: "I had never been in since the day I left when I was about 11 in 1962. It was a real trip down memory lane."

Great grandfather-of-four Bill Stokes, aged 80, of Stella Grove, Great Barr, was there on the first day when the Westminster Road school opened on August 19, 1940.

Mr Stokes, who also met his wife Margaret Stokes, 80, at the school, said: "It's great that the school is still in good condition. It's a tribute to the people who built it."

Former class teacher and grandfather-of-one Rob King, 57, of Stourbridge, worked at the school between 1975 and 1978.

He said: "It was my first teaching job. There was lots of support from the other staff and the children were friendly and pleasant. It was where I met my wife Shirley who was a nursery nurse.

"The building is brighter now but it has the same layout. It was great to see people I hadn't seen for 30 years."