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Down memory lane
20 July 2007
Children and staff at St Mary Magdalene Primary School celebrated almost 300 years of history at a special Open Day on Thursday 28 June. All the staff and most of the pupils dressed in 1940s style to celebrate the theme "Down Memory Lane", and an exhibition of children’s work and local memorabilia depicted life on the Home Front during the Second World War.
Click here to view the picture gallery for the day.
The event also marked "out with the old and in with the new" for children and staff as they look forward to vacating their old premises at the end of this term and moving into the stunning new St Mary Magdalene Academy in the autumn term. Adults and pupils alike enjoyed a Punch and Judy Show in the playground, and entertainment by Mrs Bubbles and her Harry Potter lookalike assistant in the assembly hall.
Around 150 former pupils were at the barbeque event, including former head teacher Simon Marsh, who taught at the school for 19 years from 1984-2003. Many of the "old boys and girls" are now parents with children (and even grandchildren) of their own currently at the school.
Two former pupils at the event joined the school in the 1920s. Edward Griffiths is now in his 90s, and Jean Carter, who helped cut a special commemorative cake in the shape of the school crest, started at St Mary Magdalene Primary School in 1929. She is now 81, and still lives locally.
John Stewart, current headteacher, who will be Vice Principal of St Mary Magdalene Academy when it opens on September 10, said, "This special day marked a very exciting time for the children, as they have watched the new Academy building going up for the past two years. I am absolutely delighted that every single member of staff has chosen to move across to St Mary Magdalene Academy, which will help ensure a smooth transition for the pupils."
Following on from Thursday's Open Day, the school children attended a special service at St Mary Magdalene Church, on Friday 29 June, led by the Bishop of Stepney. A procession to and from the church was followed by singing in the school hall afterwards, with a fun fair for the pupils in the afternoon.
There has been a Church of England School in Islington since 1710, and St Mary Magdalene has stood on the site since 1815. St Mary Magdalene had been a through school until it was destroyed by a direct hit during the war in 1940. Fortunately, most of the children had been evacuated to Northampton. It was rebuilt as a primary school with its current buildings in 1954.
Click here to view the picture gallery for the day
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