Tough act to follow

7:20am Monday 7th July 2008

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An admired, respected, and inspirational headteacher will retire at the end of this month after four decades of dedicated community service.

Peter Biddick, who became headteacher of Eastbury Farm JMI School in 1986, said he is bidding a reluctant farewell to a profession he loves and children who continue to inspire him.

He said: “I am lucky to have had such an enjoyable and rewarding career. I started teaching in 1968 and came here as deputy head in 1974. Working with children for all those years has been a real privilege.

“It is children who make the teaching profession so worthwhile. It is so satisfying to see them learning and understanding something for the first time.

“Above all, it is a joy to see them excited by learning.”

After 40 years in the profession, Mr Biddick, 61, said he had seen more changes than he could remember; some for the better and some for the worse.

He added: “Forty years is a long time. When I first started, corporal punishment was still legal. That was one of the reasons I chose to teach in Hertfordshire – because it was a very progressive local authority and was one of the first to ban it.

“I believe the way to discipline children is through positive encouragement, not yelling and shouting.

“But it’s funny how many things have come full circle and new ideas have been replaced with old ones.

“We used to teach reading with phonics and then stopped for years. We’ve now reintroduced it – getting great results.”

However, Mr Biddick firmly believes the current generation of primary school children are receiving a better standard of education than their parents and grandparents.

The way to success, he says, is a simple three-step formula.

“You need excellent teachers and support staff, motivated children, and supportive parents. We are lucky to have all three of these things.

“In my time here the parents have always been fantastic. They have devoted time and money to the school and really care about their children’s education.”

Some parents, however, are better known to him than others – as they too attended the school as children and could think of no better place to send their own.

He added: “That is the ultimate praise. I feel so proud that parents want to send their children here as well.”

Parents and pupils, who treated the married father-of-two to a surprise send-off party last Saturday, say he will be a tough act to follow.

Sarah Pucelli, a PTA member with two children at the school, said: “He has had such a fantastic influence on the school. The children have so much respect for him because he leads by example. He will be sorely missed.”