Today, Friday July 21, Preshute Primary School held a special celebration assembly to welcome the school bell back to the school. Albert Bull, who attended the school in the 1930s and early 1940’s, was invited to attend the assembly to ring the newly restored bell. The school bell, which is an important part of the school’s history and is featured on the school logo had fallen into disrepair. Now, after fundraising £4000 the bell is fit for use. It will be used to signal the start of the school day as it did in 1845 when it was first installed.
Albert, who has two great grand-daughters at the school, told Marlborough.news, “I remember the bell ringing as I rode my bike to school.” Albert has lived at Bayardo Farm, near West Woods all his life. He said, “I used to ignore the bell if I was waiting for the postman at Clatford Bottom! It’s wonderful that the bell has been restored, it’s something individual to the school and reinstates that special school sound. It’s a great honour to be asked back to the school I left in 1944, when I was 14, to ring the bell although of course I still have a connection to the school through my great grandchildren.”
Voluntary school gardener, Sue Elks has been behind the project to restore the bell. Sue, who is grandmother to children at the school, said, “When I was gardening I used to see the bell unused and I decided that as it’s such a historic school memory it should be refurbished and ring out again.”
Sue appealed to parents, the village and the pupils. £4000 was raised from a variety of fund raising activities. “The children did lots of fundraising and the village has been very supportive.”
Headteacher, Mrs Claire Hann-Perkins said, “The bell is a lovely piece of the school’s history. It will be nice to welcome the children to school with the bell and keep the tradition going.”
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