Soham Grammarian - Cyril Frank Hepher - 1925-26 School Year entry

Soham Grammarian - Summer 1943 'Old Boys in H M Forces' - RAF CF Hepher - 'We are glad that C F Hepher (RAF) who was torpedoed is safe' His nephew Peter Searle adds that the troopship (SS Anselm) was torpedoed on 5th July 1941, 300 miles north of the Azores (see Maritime Disasters of WWII). For the next 18 months Cyril was stationed in Freetown, West Africa with the RAF. Peter has also provided a photo of his uncle as a schoolboy, in what is presumably SGS uniform for the period. According to the two handwritten pages of school regulations (assuming that they are SGS's) this had at least to be the school cap.

 

School Regulations (1) General Conduct The General Conduct of a boy is reported upon each term. Special attention is drawn to the fact that under no circumstances is bad conduct tolerated. This applies especially to the behaviour of boys in the streets, or during journeys to and from school. Parents of boys who travel by train are asked to impress upon their boys the need for good conduct in trains and upon platforms. Reports are received regularly from Station Masters in the vicinity and if on any occasion these reports are unsatisfactory very serious action may result. The Headmaster is determined that under no circumstances will bad conduct during train journeys be allowed and he will deal severely with offenders. All boys are expected to uphold the general tone of the school and to do everything that can be done for the good of the school. (2) School Cap etc. Each boy must wear a school cap which can be obtained from the outfitter on production of a ticket from the headmaster. School Ties, Stockings, Blazers etc can be obtained by those who want them. Boys are expected to pay considerable attention to their general appearance. (3) Changing for Games Games. Football and Cricket form part of the school timetable and every boy must take part in them unless exempted for special reasons. Parents are strongly advised to provide shorts (dark blue or black), school shirts and football boots for football during the Autumn and Winter terms, and white flannels, white shirt, belt and shoes for cricket during the Summer term. Parents will find it economical in the end to provide these things because the wear and tear on ordinary clothes during football is especially great. Further, the appearance of a team of boys is greatly improved

if all change properly. Enough time is given for changing back into ordinary clothes again after the match and there are also facilities for a refreshing wash. (4) Damage to School Property Any damage to school property must be made good by the boy or boys concerned. (5) Care of Books The use of books is included in the fee, but if any book is damaged during the time the boy is responsible for it then a new book must be supplied to replace the damaged one. (6) Homework Homework is set each evening and varies from one hour to two hours according to the boy's Form. At the commencement of the school year each boy receives a Homework Time Table on which is stated the amount of time which should normally be spent on a subject. If parents find that their sons have more work than they can do in the scheduled time they are requested to inform the Headmaster by letter or interview. A verbal excuse by a boy cannot be accepted. (7) Hobbies There is one night per week - Thursday at present - when no homework is set. This has not to be regarded as a "night off". It is given so that each boy may have time to pursue a hobby. On admission to the school a boy selects a Hobby and spends a certain amount of time - Thursday and other available time at it. About twice per term the work done is inspected in order to see whether a boy has been industrious or not. If the work is satisfactory he is allowed to continue, but if not then the hobby evening may be withdrawn and ordinary homework substituted in its place.

---

If you can add recollections or photos please contact the editor
page created 4 Feb 14