DESPITE the cold and frosty weather, eleven former pupils of Broadwoodkelly Village School turned out on Thursday for their first reunion in 58 years.

The gathering was the idea of Mrs Dee Gant. Having been fairly new to the area, she, along with other residents, was keen to record some of the stories and local history.

?Most of the people who last went to the school are in their late 60s and 70s and unless you collect their stories they will be gone for ever,? she said.

The bitterly cold weather caused the oldest living former pupil, 101-year-old Sidney Harris, to stay at home by the fire ? but memories were recalled by those who did attend.

Many tales were told of good times in the little schoolroom in the heart of a rural village.

The school closed in December 1944 and the children started at Winkleigh in February 1945.

?The reason they didn?t start at the beginning of term was that there was a lot of snow and they couldn?t walk there,? said Mrs Gant.

Although the Broadwoodkelly register no longer exists the Winkleigh register records eleven pupils moving over.

?There was probably not more than that because until 1928 the children stayed at Broadwoodkelly for the whole of their school life,? said Mrs Gant.

The reunion provided plenty of material and many good humoured recollections.

Hilda Arscott remembered going up to collect the school milk from Park Farm. ?It came in an enamel container and I used to lift the lid off and let the dog have a good drink before bringing it down to the school,? she said.

John Sowden recalled there being no electricity in the hall.

?In winter time, when it got a bit dark, the boys would do handiwork and the girls needlework. Important lessons were done in the morning.?

The little school consisted of just one room and had no inside toilet. It was heated by a stove and a curtain separated the older children from the infants.

Those living too far away to go home at lunch time would bring their own food.

?I remember many times dropping and breaking my thermos on the way,? said Georgina Elstone.

Diana Beeson from Bristol, who telephoned through her memories of being an evacuee during the war, said: ?I remember changing into my shoes and hiding my wellingtons under the hedge after walking across the fields.?

There was no toilet at the school and pupils had to use a bucket at the back of the building. One of the favourite pranks of the boys was tormenting any girl using it by selecting the longest stinging nettle and pushing it through a hole in the wall.

These and other stories will be included in a small booklet about the school. Mrs Gant is hoping to arrange another reunion in the summer and hopes to contact some of the evacuees that attended the school.

If you were unable to attend the recent reunion, have a tale to tell or photographs of this time, please get in touch with either Georgina Elstone on 01837 83506 or Dee Gant on 01837 83625.