So who were the staff that I came into contact with throughout my time living in the children's home - whilst I am reliant upon memory its funny how I can still clearly recollect my contact and experiences with people who appeared within such a few short years in the context of my lifespan.
Monica: A fairly mature lady whom I saw in a bit of a grandmother role. She often comforted us, would take some of us to her house occasionally and regularly played a certain game, Newmarket, which was immensely popular for all of the kids. We played for....rasins.... Lynn: A middle aged woman who was firm but fair. Not very often she lost her temper, but when she did we would know about it. Chris: would often allow us to bend the rules a little. However she too was someone to be wary off when disobeying rules - she was not a soft touch. Karen: She was perhaps the most prominent member of staff in my stay at the home. She later took on the role of being my keyworker, and on many occasions I was invited to her house for tea with her family. However I was also on the end of her wrath at times - another firm but fair staff member. Rosemary: I think she came to the establishment with little experience. All of the children seemed to sense this, and on many occasions she could be seen crying in the office. On reflection I feel that she received the worst treatment of all female staff, yet she still hung in there. Judy: She was the boss, yet often found herself covering for staff. A very down to earth person who had the ability to empathise with the children and work as part of the staff team rather than the boss. Wendy: Similar qualities to Judy, yet I feel that she was an old hand when it came to dealing with children such as ourselves.
John: This guy meant business and was feared perhaps more than all members of staff, although on reflection I would now describe him as firm but fair. Some of the punishments he used to dish out were ingenious. My least favourite when we used to mess about at night was each child spaced throughout the corridor leading to the office, and each of us given a bible. We would all be told to start copying it, and after a certain period of time John would stop us, screw up the work we had done and send us back to bed. There were other punishments he came up with, but given the modern day take of child abuse in children's homes I must stress that at no point throughout my experiences was I, or anyone else, subject to any form of child abuse or neglect. Mick: A youngish guy who seemed to enjoy engaging with the kids, playing games and teaching us bits and pieces about life. My most vivid memory of this guy was of visiting the dentist with him to have a tooth out, being put to sleep by the dentist and waking up in Mick's arms. Whilst he had this sensitive, caring side there was also a side that we would not cross. He was not in the same league of John but used to send us to bed early on numerous occasions. Phil: My fondest memories of playing games in the home were of Phil introducing us all to 'torchlight tig.' This would involve is all going into the back gardens and hiding (when it was dark) and whoever was 'it' would have the torch and try to spot us. If we were caught we were out of the game. We used to spend many a summer evening playing this game, and it certainly tired us all out!! Eventually the kids took it to the extreme, climbing the fences and hiding in a school which was situated next door to the children's home, and the game was subsequently banned. Norman: A great guy for playing games with - I recall him being a part time staff member who was pretty laid back and fair.
Maureen & Val: These were the cleaners with whom I had a fair amount of contact with. Both were highly approachable and offered their sympathies and support whenever they could. Josie: She was the cook. Josie was a cheerful person who always seemed to be busy in the kitchen, I can recall always seeing pans bubbling and hearing Josie singing. However, some of the food she cooked was, in my opinion, inedible. I give particular mention to the cauliflower cheese and Macaroni cheese she used to cook. I did not like it, yet it always seemed to appear before me. I would not eat it under any circumstances, and often found myself going to bed without any supper, or it appearing before me (reheated) for my supper. As a result of this when someone had forgotten to lock the pantry, I often found myself raiding it for digestive biscuits and chocolate, often getting caught in the process.