Whittington Primary School teacher of 40 years to retire

The bell at Whittington C Of E Primary School will ring for the final time for Judith Harrison after she revealed she will be retiring.

The 64-year-old has waved thousands of pupils in and out of the school gates on Old Road and will say farewell to her last cohort this Friday when the school breaks up for summer.

Judith Harrison with one of her first classes 40 years ago. (Image: Judith Harrison) Forty years ago, Mrs Harrison joined the school with a love for children and a desire to help them grow into young people.

"I really hope I have achieved that," she said, reflecting on her initial mission. "I have grown with the school.

"For example, we had 45 children when I first came, and now we have 210.

"It has gone from two small classrooms to now seven - it is the same school, but it has grown."

Mrs Harrison at her staff leaving party. (Image: Judith Harrison) She said one of her proudest moments was setting up its Forest School, which had started out as an empty field when she joined in the 1980s.

Throughout that time, she specialised in teaching reception classes and year one pupils and said the school's family feel has kept her there for so long.

"The nice thing is when I teach a child of a child I had taught and see generation after generation.

"I think I could not have done that bad at teaching them if they want to come back.

"When I am out and about, I get stopped, and people say who they are, and I then get this image of a little five-year-old them."

Mrs Harrison's departure from the school will be bittersweet, but she said now is the right time to move on.

"I get emotional - there is that thing of missing being there and missing the children, but I am sure I will be in touch."

She said she may in the future look to volunteering at the school but, for now, will enjoy being able to take a holiday which is no longer bound by the school terms.