Former students, who are now staff members, talk about their experiences of being at St Thomas More Catholic School during childhood and working adulthood.
Mrs K Chesters
After my first day at St Thomas More in September 1989 I went home to my parents and cried. I told them I missed my primary school, St Patrick’s, and wasn’t sure I was going to like my new school. My mum reassured me and said you will grow to love this school and I am sure you will cry on the day you leave in the sixth form. Mum was absolutely right.
I attended St Thomas More during the era that the school was led by Mr Humphries, Mr Nicolls and Mr Reeves. They ran the school like a finely tuned engine, with everyone playing a role and everyone knowing their part. As a young teenager you could see they took enormous pride in the school and they instilled this pride in us. From the days of when the whole school would line up on the field on Martyn site and pick up litter that was in front of you, we were encouraged to respect our school, our friends, our surroundings. Treat the school and the people within it as our home and family and this in turn brought about the wonderful reputation of the school.
One of my fondest memories was (like most former pupils) attending More House in Tenbury. I went in year 7 the week before Christmas. Mr Bradley brought the biggest Christmas tree I had ever seen into the dining room of the house and my form group spent the day making decorations. We were then visited by Mr O’Donoghue and Mr Reeves that evening and we all sang carols around the tree with our new mates who (for me) would be life long friends. It was magic.
At the start of Year 8 I completed a piece of homework on Leonardo Da Vinci for Mr Lake. When he marked it I could not believe the wonderful comments he had written on my work. This inspired me so much and from then on I strived to complete all work to this standard to receive such high recognition. Such was the influence of teachers upon us.
In Years 10 and 11, evident by our distinctive brown uniform, we moved to the Leveson site to focus on exams. Here we were encouraged to work hard, strive for the best for our future and grow as young adults. At the same time staff such as Mrs Matkin and Miss Connolly encouraged us to explore our own ideas, be the very best version of ourselves whilst also respecting our opinions and views as young adults with growing ideas and minds.
I left St Thomas More in 1996. Over twenty years later I am blessed to say that some of my closest friends also attended the school and so did my husband. STM is an inherent part of my life! I am glad that they too had similar experiences to me at school, feeling happy and cared for.
This is now my 17th year of teaching at the school. The length of time gives an indication of how much I have enjoyed my teaching role here and I hope in some way I have emulated the care and dedication to pupils that I received many years ago.
St Thomas More has distinctively changed since I was a pupil and I like that. The bridge has gone, the buildings and location are completely different and many of my former teachers have moved on or retired. In addition the school has changed and progressed with society and very much moved with the times which is good. However as a pupil and teacher there are some aspects that are fundamentally the same. These are the Catholic values that are the foundations of the school. That staff and pupils follow the teachings to “love one another as I have loved you” and “to be God’s servant first”. These values make me immensely proud to be both a former pupil and staff member of St Thomas More School and this is what makes us so special and unique.
Mrs J Newell
Why do you think your parents chose STM as a school for you?
As I already attended the feeder school of Holy Trinity, STM was the automatic choice anyway. I remember my parents saying to me “it is a really good school, you will do well there”. Also my mom had previously been a pupil here at the old Francis Leveson site so I suppose I followed in her footsteps.
What did you enjoy most about STM as a student?
The whole school Masses and celebrations were amazing, taking part in school productions, meeting lots of new friends, PE lessons and gym club after school, feeling of belonging and being very proud to be wearing the uniform, trips to London, caring teachers who were always supportive and encouraging.
How did your teachers encourage, inspire and support you?
Particularly in Sixth Form my teachers always treated me with respect as a young adult and encouraged me to work hard to achieve my dream of becoming a teacher. They inspired me to enjoy the wonderful subject of Business and they even encouraged our business group to set up a Tuck Shop in school, where they would take us to the cash and carry each week to buy stock! Teachers were always supportive during difficult times but were also there to celebrate our success at the lovely presentation evenings, it seemed to make them so proud.
How did the standards of STM prepare you for your working life?
Being acceptable of following rules and routines, respecting people and working as a team, being well dressed and presentable by wearing correct uniform, professional conduct, taking responsibility and being independent.
How did the ethos, values, moral principles and faith life of the school prepare you or shape you as a person and for your future life?
It taught me to be a good honest person and citizen with good morals, showing respect to others, not judging people and most importantly to be caring and look after one another.
What would you advise your younger self if you could?
Be more confident, don’t worry about what other people might think!
What has been your most important lesson in life to date?
Work hard, be positive but most importantly enjoy what you do, as success will most certainly follow.
Mr G Bowen
Why do you think your parents chose STM as a school for you?
They wanted a Catholic School for me to go to because of the general reputation they have for higher standards. I was allocated a place at another school which did not have a very good reputation at the time and so my dad decided to apply to STM and thankfully I was accepted.
What did you enjoy most about STM as a student?
The feeling of being looked after and the high expectations of the staff – I felt safe and could thrive in a positive environment with my friendship group.
How did your teachers encourage, inspire and support you?
Expecting the best, telling me I could do it and helping me every step of the way. One teacher who shall remain nameless but was a Business Studies teacher was so encouraging and had a good sense of humour. He really inspired me to think about a career in teaching. One Sixth Form lesson he left the room for just a moment so I got up and started teaching the class (bit of acting etc). He came back in and I was mortified (I had put his jacket on and was doing an impression of him). I thought he was going to kill me – but surprisingly he said “carry on then and I’ll do your notes for you”. He then said after the lesson – “you should consider teaching!”
How did the standards of STM prepare you for your working life?
I think it teaches you everyday lessons like being smart for work, being on time and doing your best in your working career. Learning how to work with other people and valuable lessons about getting on with people and having standards. It gave me the discipline and resilience to work in a job like teaching. But I think it prepares you for any working life really.
How did the ethos, values, moral principles and faith life of the school prepare you or shape you as a person and for your future life?
I think it gave me a good foundation because of the faith element and Catholic values of the school. I have always appreciated them and particularly so now as a parent myself of a 17 year old and 10 year old!
What would you advise your younger self if you could?
To believe more in what you can do and are capable of. Realise that listening and taking notice of teacher’s advice is a wise thing to do. Accept that sometimes other people know best. Have more confidence in your capabilities and keep going. Stay humble and work hard.
What has been your most important lesson in life to date?
Every day is a lesson in life, is the most important lesson!
Mr D O’Connor
Being Walsall-born, I attended St Patrick’s Primary School and as I approached Year 6, my parents began discussing with others which secondary school was right for me. I am very thankful that because of glowing reviews from friends and family member, they chose St Thomas More Catholic School. During those first days in Year 7 I was a little more nervous than thankful, I found myself in different classes to my other St Patrick’s friends, those nerves quickly disappeared as I was made to feel part of a special community by teachers and students alike.
Across the old Leveson and Martyn Sites I was given the encouragement and support needed to prepare me for the working world, I was given excellent opportunities to visit our residential More House site and developed strong relationships, friends I still hold very dear today. As I reflect back on my schoollife, I can confidently say that the care and dedication shown to me by my teachers is one of the key reasons I wanted a career in education myself.
If I could go back to September 1994 and speak to my younger self during my first day in Year 7, I would encourage him to take more extra-curricular opportunities. Teaching staff, both then and now, invest so much of their own time in after-school clubs and events. I only wish I’d have attended more of them to develop my skills further. The school’s ethos has been the foundation for how I live my life, I always look to help and support those who need it and I will always remain immensely proud to be a part of the St Thomas More community.