A throwback to the Victorian era, her lengthy period of 31 years as headmistress was not without controversy as she shaped the lives of consecutive generations of Upchurch children.
Known as ‘Fanny’ Broughton to her pupils, she attended Sittingbourne County School from 1918 to 1924, had served as an unqualified teacher then entered Goldsmiths College London in 1926. She was then appointed to Sheerness Rose Street Junior School in 1929. After a short period at Sheerness Broadway Junior School she arrived at Holywell in September 1936.
Newly appointed Phyllis Broughton created a stir when parents discovered she was a Catholic. After all, Holywell had started as a Church of England school. Revd Lightburne writing in the parish magazine in October 1936 tried to reassure parents by stressing that her religious denomination had no bearing on her selection but expressed sadness that she would not be able to participate in the village church.
The H.M.I Report of November 17th 1937 recognised Miss Broughton’s talent as a teacher:
The headmistress gives vigorous lessons in physical training to both classes and the results of her introduction of imaginative painting and pattern work allied with simple book craft are most satisfactory.
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| Memories of Upchurch. |
A strict, no nonsense lady with a round face, Miss Broughton used her own effective methods of dealing with pupils. A serious tantrum sometimes led to incarceration in the cloakroom at playtime, several sharp raps across the palm of the hand with a wooden ruler were frequently given for dissent. Occasionally, a ball kicked into Mr Steven’s adjacent field of bullocks during playtime would sometimes be retrieved by a pupil without permission. Reported immediately by watching ‘goody goodies’, Miss Broughton would soon be on hand with her trusty ruler ready to administer the inevitable punishment.Few dared defy or question Miss Broughton. Her brother served as a detective inspector in the police so order and discipline ran in the family. However, she also demonstrated a sympathetic side as an entry in the school log book dated April 3rd 1939 shows: Percy Still bitten by a dog on the way to school. Treated in school–suffering from shock so was sent home.
On October 30th 1946 she wrote: During gardening Graham Clemons accidentally stuck a digging fork in Roger Martin’s foot. The wound was cleaned and dressed then the boy sent home.
Miss Broughton had an eye for picking potential 11 plus pupils and concentrated her efforts on them, ensuring the select group passed for the local grammar school. This method led to praise from some parents but criticism from others. A dedicated teacher, she consistently maintained good order and generally gained respect. She also successfully ran the school under difficult circumstances during World War Two when Upchurch based Rainham Secondary pupils had to return to Holywell to continue their education, sharply increasing numbers from 39 to 95 in 1940.
Miss Broughton finally retired in 1967 and is still remembered by former Holywell pupils for helping to shape their early education, with a few sharp raps across the palm with the dreaded ruler along the way.
David Wood, who was born and raised in Upchurch and is able to write from personal experience about many people and aspects of the village and of changes that have taken place over the years making ‘Memories of Upchurch’ a very readable book and a detailed historical study of the village.
David Wood
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