Staff at Kell Bank Primary School in Masham are committed to going ahead with a memory exhibition to celebrate the school’s history, before it closes for good next month.
Governors and teachers wanted to bid farewell to the 200-year-old school, which will shut its doors on August 31, but coronavirus has meant the celebration has been delayed.
The exhibition will now be held from July 15 to 17 at Fearby Village Hall, just outside Masham, and will include photographs, old diary entries and poetry books some dating as far back as 1900.
A one-off ‘newspaper’ has been created to combine reports and images shared by past and current staff and pupils, such as 96-year-old Ivy l’Anson, pictured below as a pupil.
On July 22 – the day before the children break up for the summer – the school will host an open day, as well as a tree planting and the dedication of a bench on Fearby village green.
Ivy I’Anson is now 96 years old and has shared her memories of Kell Bank School in a one-off ‘newspaper’ created by staff
With only six remaining pupils, Kell Bank School was handed a permanent closure notice by North Yorkshire County Council.
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Laurie Hoyes, a school governor, said:
“The restrictions have set us back slightly but we are still really pleased with the exhibition we have put together.
“We’ve put together a ‘Kell Bank Times’, which people can pick up from the community centre or school. It’s 12 pages of memories including Ivy who’s 96 and our oldest living pupil. She’s shared her treasured memories with us.”
The organisers hope the exhibition and other events will help to highlight the school’s role in local people’s lives.
