English Martyrs RC School

Hi Kevin. Being a Walworth boy I don't visit this site that often, but I thought I would respond to your posting re English Martyrs School. I used to live in one of the prefabs in Minnow Street, which was the first street on the left if you went in to East Street from the Old Kent Road. It's now called Minnow Walk and the old prefabs were demolished in the early 1970's. I lived there uintil 1969 and my next door neighbours were the McCormick family. There were two brothers. Barry, who was my age, (so would be 63 this year) and his brother, Danny, who was a year older. They both went to English Martyrs. I also knew Laurie Lake, Christine and Cathy Byrne and Danny McSweeney who also went there. Is the latter any relation of yours? I'm sure other names will come back to me eventually, but it was a long time ago. Re Pages Walk, when I was at Surrey Square primary school there was a girl in my class named Carol Francis and she lived in Pages Walk. It can sometimes be a small world, so wondered if you knew her.
Cheers,
Del.

hi guinnessboy i went to english martyers rc school i left in 1953 do u remember macleece he was our boxing instructer and a great teacher, he was pretty tough he had to be with us lot i used to live in creasy estate in aberdore street at the bricklayers arms i think there were only a few of us that went to em most of the lads went to webb street

I don't know how far back you go, but I was evacuated to Shafresbury with English Martyrs School on 1st September 1939. My mother, Mrs Dorothy McCarthy had gone back to teaching there after I was born in 1933, and when war thratened she transferred my brother Brian and me to her school so that we were all evacuated together. Miss Mahoney was the headteacher. I also remember Miss Ellie Sullivan. I can.t remember  how long we stayed in Dorset; less than two years, and when we came back I continued to go to school with Mum from our home in Sidcup until I was 10 in 1943, when I went to Notre Dame Convent through the V1s and V2s. Pupils of English Martyrs would remember my mother; she was one of a family of teachers from Peckham and taught in Walworth from the early t wenties until the fifties, with a break from 1931 to 33  to have her children. My father's family were McCarthys from Bermondsey; his father and two of his brothers had a leather factory, and all the family worked there until just before the war when things were difficult for businesses during the depression.
I'm afraid I can't remeber names of children at school; it's so long ago. My brother would have; he had a wonderful memory, but unfortunately died quite young a few years ago.
I've been researching my family tree in Bermondsey and Peckham and think it's a wonderful part of London.  I spent my own teaching career in Deptford.

Hi Kevin
I seem to remember your name and am pretty sure I was at English Martyrs at the same time as you,teachers I remember   Mr Crawford {Boot Nose] and our class teacher for about 3 years Mr Pinkney. schoolmates Steven Ryan,John Walker,John Bryan and Micheal Gobbels, he was always crying you had only have to say Boo to him and out would come the hankie and the tears. Remember we were doing the Duke of Edinburgh award and Mr Pinkney was taking the standards, one was to throw a cricket ball ex amount of yards, it was Micheals turn and he was  shaking saying I can`t sir
Pinkney said "There Not Such A Word As Can`t" throw the god dam thing. He did and hit Pinkney on the head, out came the hankie and Micheal started crying, I started laughing and Pinkney canned me instead of Micheal