West Mark School, Petersfield

[Westmark]

Was somebody trying to reach me the other day.  Westmark

[thedog]

I was too at West Mark school about 1952. Any more photos. Is one of them the dinning hall

[Mike Pitson]

Hi Everyone from ex West Mark School Petersfield. Like a lot of you I too was there. About 1952 till it closed in 1955 when I was transferred to Tylney Hall at Rotherwick. I started in Harting, then Buriton, and ended up in Midhurst. The girls dorm were Selbourne and Winchester. Yes, great times though I was sometime in trouble. Like when I boasted that I could start the gardeners motor bike which was parked by the boys shower block. My mates goaded me on saying that I could not - I did. The bike started up, the mates vanished, and I was left with a bike making a lot of noise that I did not know how to switch it off!!! A whack on the back side from our Mr Evans followed. Another time, some how, we made some sort of alcohol brewed in the janitors store room for drinking during the last night of term, guess what we were found out, another visit to Mr Evans.
After all these years I remember the Saturday evening film shows (if you were good!) proceeded by the walk into Petersfield which allowed free time to do our own thing (hooray! freedom!).
Does any body remember a lass called Crelly(?) Reece a Welsh girl who had a wonderful singing voice. Even as a silly school boy I was mesmerised by her voice - I wonder what happened to her.
My first thoughts of girls started here a Pauline Hill from Greenford Middx. A tall lass (as all my ladies have been) after school she worked in Irish Stud Farm, Hall Dare , Bunclody. I visited her there and got drunk on the illegal Irish whiskey. How about the Lake twins who lived in Wembley, Tony & Eric if I recall correctly. Remember on Saturday in the food block we got fried egg dip. The Quinine spooned out in the medical block in the winter to prevent colds! The Isle of Wight annual day out with packed sandwiches, all very exciting when you are young. After your first term you knew the ropes - like in winter you chose the lower bunk by the large heating pipe that ran around the dorm. Likewise in summer you grabbed to top bunk nearest the window which you could open. We chaps would spend hours over getting the sharpest crease in our trousers and following fashion putting cardboard based top handkerchiefs into our top jacked pocket. Yes, guys and gals they were great times. Yours Mike Pitson.   

[driftwoodharold]

In the late 40's there was a scheme to give London kids a taste of country life. I was a at a school in west London and remember in 1949 when I was 13 spending a term at West Mark. It was for around three months. We had dormitories with double bunks. Most vivid was meeting girls for dancing lessons. I came from all boys school. We had to write home once a month to our parents. I hated having to do this. I was still in  short trousers and one of the other lads lent me a pair of his long ones, so I aske my mum and dad if I could have a pair. I was looking forward to a reply and it duly came. My dad had returned my own letter with all my spelling mistakes corrected.

Overall West Mark was a great experience and I often go along the road now where the school was and it all comes back.   

[ramsey barber]

Hi to Mickey Pitson I remember you at Westmark you lived at west drayton then ,I also remember the

Lake twins,John Isherwood,John[Beaky]Holder,Mervyn Dunscombe the list goes on.
Ramsey Barber

[Mike Pitson]

Hi Ramsey, Great to hear from you. Good heavens, John Isherwood, yes I remember him. But must admit I don't remember many others. Sure they were wonderful days. I've been down to the old school site but can't recognise much of the lay out - shame! I live in Guildford Surrey, are you near me? I would love to chat about the good old days now that we are in our seventies.  Kind regards Mike Pitson. 

[ramsey barber]

 Hi to all you West Markers . Just to remind you all. A brief history of our School, It opened in Sept 1949 to help children of Middx get a better education!!? which it did . And closed on Friday 13th July1956{unlucky for us} . During this time 2,758 Boys and Girls went to the school. The attendance per term was 180 boys and girls. In the early 1950"s a boy from  Midhurst Dorm, was awarded the GEORGE MEDAL for saving 2 boys who fell through the ice on the ponds at Osterley park[i forget his name]. In1961 the remote island ofTRISTAN DA CUNHA IN THE SOUTH ATLANTIC was evacuated because of Volcanic eruption,the 200 inhabitants were brought back to England via Cape Town  and returned in 1963 and where did stay       WEST MARK .   Merry Xmas to you all Ramsey Barber

[Mike Pitson]

Hi Ramsey. Thanks for your greetings, a very Happy Christmas and New Year to you too.
Mike Pitson.

[ramsey barber]

 Hi  Mike thanks for the seasonal greetings ,as you suggest lets have meeting,I live at Ashford Middx I am mobile [car] are you?   we could meet at Woking/? and have a good reminisce Ramsey Barber