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Star 5/4/1940
SCHOOL STRIKE
PARENTS..MAY..BE..PROSECUTED
Parents of children attending Ash Village School, near
Dartford, where a stay-out strike has been staged as a protest
against the dismissal of the head mistress, Miss Wright, have
been threatened with prosecution unless the children return to
school immediately.
Miss Wright, who is 63, and has been at the school for nearly 30
years, says she does not know why she has been dismissed. A
reply ism awaited from the Kent Education Committee to a
resolution passed at a protest meeting calling for her
reinstatement. Mr. Simmons, one of the school managers, has
toured the village streets in his car, offering to give the
truant children free rides to school. There is considerable
feeling about the dismissal, and Miss Wright says she intends to
stay with friends in the village until the matter is settled.
Daily Mail 26/4/1940
Mr. W. Simmons
In our issue of April 2nd it was reported that during the
school dispute in the village of Ash, Mr. W. Simmons, a school
manager, went along the streets of Ash offering the children
free car rides to school and warning parents that they would be
summoned if they did not attend. We are informed that this did
not happen, and we regret any misapprehension which may have
arisen. |
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Daily Mail
SUMMONS THREAT.
Children Cry "We Want Miss
Wright."
The strike of Ash parents is virtually over. With the
exception of a few of the elder pupils, who can cycle to
Longfield, all the children are back at school. The parents, who
were still holding out last week, were influenced by notices
from the Kent Education Committee stating that unless their
children were sent back to school immediately, they would be
liable for prosecution without further notice.
On Tuesday morning, when the children were sent out
to play, they all shouted, "We want Miss Wright." When
Miss Hodges called them to go in school, they refused and she
had to send for the Rector. The children, however, run out of
the school playground and down the village street, still
shouting, "We want Miss Wright." As he was
unable to cope with the situation, the Rector obtained the
assistance of Mr. Notley, from Dartford. The children all came
to school in the afternoon.
In spite of the resolutions passed at the Annual
Parish Meeting, and the parents’ protest meeting, no enquiry
has yet been instituted to discover why Miss Wright was
dismissed. Miss Wright, who is also completely mystified as to
why she has been dismissed, is quite willing to face any such
enquiry.
It is interesting to note that Miss Wright’s
predecessor was also summarily dismissed after 27 years’
service. |