DR HARRY Carpenter was kept busy attending numerous school and church centenaries during his 15 years as Bishop of Oxford.
The man responsible for this heavy workload was one of his predecessors, Samuel Wilberforce.
Dr Carpenter explained: “He was a great builder. In his 25 years as Bishop of the diocese, he caused a great many churches and schools to be built and, as a result, I am constantly having to attend centenaries brought about by him.”
One centenary he attended was in 1964 at Headington Quarry Church of England School in Oxford, which this year celebrates its 150th anniversary.
The school had been opened by Bishop Wilberforce in September 1864.
The centenary celebrations included a pageant of the school’s history, a display of country dancing by pupils, and morris dancing, before a large gathering of parents, friends and staff, past and present, in the school playground.
- Paul Johnson, 11, playing the part of Father Time, reads extracts from the school log book during the centenary celebrations in 1964
Dr Carpenter congratulated the school on reaching its landmark. He said: “It is a help to the children to be in buildings which have modern amenities, light and air and which provide them with pleasant surroundings. All these things count for something in the education of our children.
“The whole process of education is very much more attractive nowadays, with well-trained teachers and attractive visual aids, than in my own school days.”
He said people sometimes wondered why the Church did not leave education to others.
“The answer is very simple,” he said. “The Church is interested in people. That is its mission in the world and people are formed, moulded and influenced by education.”
The Sheriff of Oxford, Councillor Michael Maclagan, said: “You inherit a very proud and important tradition of belonging to a school which was existing and turning out pupils before the first great wave of national education ever broke over this country.”
During the afternoon, the Bishop presented a tea set to Florence Phipps, who had been the school caretaker for 35 years.
- Pupils with T-shirts with the motif of the old quarry masons, preserving a link with Headington Quarry in the past in 1981
The school will celebrate its 150th anniversary on Saturday, June 21, from 2pm and is appealing for photographs and memories.
Call 01865 762345, email office.1006@headington-nurs.oxon.sch.uk or contact the school’s Facebook page, ‘Headington Quarry School is 150 years old!’
- Memory Lane this week
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