Longridge heart beats proudly on Founders Day

Another school year at Longridge finished  in traditional style with the Founders Day event held in glorious sunshine on Thursday.

It was inevitably tinged with sadness as Upper Sixth students said goodbye for the final time, while for Headteacher Mr Lee and several members of staff it was also time to reflect on their years at Longridge as they retire or head to pastures new.

Berwick businessman Michael Brennan provided a fascinating speech on following his dream from schooldays to entrepreneurship, and called on children across the hall to ‘dream big’.

The School’s Honorary President, a Founder and former chair of Governors, Ian McCreath was in attendance with his wife Christine and daughter Emma (pictured below), who was returning to the School for the first time since she left Upper Sixth and started a career in teaching which has taken her across the world.

Mr McCreath told us: “It is wonderful to see the school still thriving nearly 45 years since we took it over from the nuns, who had served the girls in the area well, and founded a co-ed independent school that we thought was needed in the area.

“When you hear of the success of the pupils, what they have achieved and what they are going on to do, I am very proud of the fact that it has continued to be successful and provide a great education for many, many children in this area.”

Emma attended the former convent school and continued at Longridge, with her two siblings, when it changed into the new ownership in 1982, and she was pleased to be able to attend Founders Day on a trip home from Hanoi in Vietnam, where she now teaches.

“This is my first time back since I left as a pupil and I’ve really enjoyed it,” she said. “I have lots of great memories from my time here, but as I watch the children walking around in their lovely uniforms one that sticks in the mind for some reason is the first thing that was done in the new school was get rid of the hideous uniforms we had to wear when it was a convent!

“They certainly look much nicer these days. My own children came here for a short time between me moving between schools and it is lovely to see it still going strong.”

‘Remember to enjoy the journey, not just the end goal’

Mr Lee welcomed pupils, parents and staff to the main event in a vibrantly decorated hall and spoke of the story of the ‘Old Woman who Lived in the Vinegar Bottle’ as he urged pupils not to focus everything on an end goal but to enjoy the journey they are on.

“The point of the story is about being careful what you wish for and finding peace and happiness on your journeys,” he said. “I hope that every one of you has found some peace, happiness and gratitude in knowing that your hard work, your endeavour, your kindness and your spirit has been valued and recognised by yourself and those around you at Longridge.

“Over the last ten years, the school has grown and developed in many ways. We have been through a global pandemic together, and we have strengthened our curriculum, now adding additional agriculture and business courses for next year. Despite difficult times in the sector, we have invested in wellbeing, improved our facilities and built real partnerships with those around us.

“I wanted to acknowledge the warmth and strength of this community and the support that we’ve received. Your encouragement, commitment and willingness to speak up for the school have mattered hugely. If being a headteacher has taught me anything, it is that schools are all about the people, not the buildings and the numbers or even the results alone.”

Tributes and thanks to staff, pupils and Longridge community

He paid tribute to Mr Davie, who was retiring after 25 years as a mathematics teacher, and ski leader, and other staff, and governor Mrs Derries, who were departing, and thanked the pupils, parents, staff, governors and the Longridge community for their support. He also spoke of his time spent with the incoming headteacher Mr Wilcox, as well as new staff, and said he was reassured that they would be extremely good additions to the school.

Turning back to the children, he added: “My hope for every pupil is very simple. I hope that you leave Longridge able to communicate clearly, to collaborate with kindness, to work with others with kindness, and able to have confidence in your own part and your own path, and that you leave as decent human beings who know how to nurture the small things that make a community what it is.

“If you can do that, you will carry with you something far more valuable than any possession, and that’s the ability to create peace, purpose, and belonging wherever life takes you.”

Tributes were paid to Mr Lee at various events throughout the day, and Deputy Headteacher Mrs Arnott thanked him for his decade of leadership, and said one word emerged more than any other in the tributes paid to him by staff and pupils, and that was that he epitomised ‘kindness’.

Captains reflect on how Longridge helped them to grow

The School Captains, Curd and Lottie, addressed the audience and shared their words of wisdom. Curd, who had followed his elder brother from Germany to Longridge, shared a very personal story of how after a positive start to school life his behaviour deteriorated. He spoke of how Longridge teachers had helped him regain his focus and turned his time at Longridge into a very positive one.

“I also realised that many of the problems I was encountering every day were self-inflicted,” he said, “caused by my own behaviour, by my own lack of motivation, positive attitudes and care for the people around me, but also care for myself.

“I started making changes. I tried to apply myself more in and outside the classroom. I started to invest more effort into the way I presented myself, the way I acted towards peers and teachers. And most importantly, I stopped taking the easy option every single time. I started challenging myself more and stepping outside my own comfort zone.

“This was the number one factor that led to me becoming more confident in my own ability, more comfortable around my peers and teachers, and achieving better results when it came to my academics.

“This change in mindset completely changed the way I felt about school and the way I see my time at Longridge now. It has been a time full of wonderful moments and laughter, but also a place that has helped me overcome my fears and has given me an environment to freely express myself and learn.”

His fellow captain Lottie spoke of how Longridge had helped her find her voice and become confident.

“It may be ambitious to suggest I was ever shy or quiet, but when I first joined Longridge in 2019, I certainly was not the person I am today. I lacked confidence to express my opinions … to put my hand up in class. To fit in, I felt I had to be the same.

“Over the past seven years, not only have I gained an academic understanding which will no doubt set me in good stead to continue learning, but Longridge has also allowed me to develop as an individual.

“Longridge has nurtured my personal growth and development, and created a space where I feel confident to be me and become someone I hope I would have looked up to in those early days of joining the Longridge community.

“I know I am not the only one here today who believes Longridge has allowed them, or is allowing them, to become the type of person they aspire to be.”

Both captains thanked staff and parents for their support and urged pupils replacing them in Upper Sixth and further down the school to live up to the Longridge motto of ‘Carpe Diem’, and seize the day. A rousing performance of the school song of that title, written by Dr Dalrymple and Dr Hardy, and supported by Dr Hardy and the orchestra, brought the curtain down on a memorable final day of the 2025-26 school year.