Our History

During and after the War, clothes rationing and general austerity made strict adherence to a uniform nigh on impossible. Make do and mend was very much the order of the day.

Pamela Anderson (née Shirley) wrote in the 1987 Reunion brochure about her time at East Barnet School during World War II. Her recollections reflect a very different attitude to clothing than the throwaway culture of cheap imports we are now accustomed to:

“….it was back to the maroon tunic, butcher-blue blouse and grey lisle stockings again; the cloth hat in winter and the chip-straw hat in summer… It was still wartime when I left East Barnet Grammar School. My tunic was turned into a skirt for lack of clothing coupons and my jumper was unraveled and re-knitted into something more fashionable.”

Miss Brooks (Senior Mistress 1944 – 1967) also noted the problems of enforcing uniform during that period:

“Commonplace uniform was achieved with difficulty, games kits were often bizarre; the girls played hockey and netball without skirts over their navy blue knickers, and without stockings…”

Mickey Bennett (pictured) who attended the school in the 1940s recalls his well-worn blazer:

“I attended East Barnet from 1942 to 1947 and I reckon that this photo was taken around 1945/46, probably 1945. I’m afraid it doesn’t exactly show much of a uniform, just blazer and grey trousers for the boys although I do remember having a school tie and cap.

“If the photo was taken in ‘45 then I would have been in the third year at the time and by the look of the length of sleeve and the tight fit then I would reckon it was probably the original blazer I had when I first started at the school. Being wartime years, clothing was rationed of course.”

Uniform in the Fifties was strict and strictly enforced.

Derek and David (pictured), looked every inch the archetypal 1950s school boys of popular imagination. Caps, blazers and shorts redolent of Jennings and Just William, ready for school and lots of japes, complete with pens in breast pockets, and, no doubt, their shorts’ pockets filled with conkers and string. All boys were compelled to wear short trousers throughout the year, until either they reached the second year or they reached a certain height, whichever occurred first.

Sue Kingston (pictured with her friends), remembers the girls’ uniforms of her schooldays in the 1950s:

“I believe that the regulation blue and white check dress material was in the process of being replaced by a blue and white floral design which explains why we are not all dressed exactly the same. There was a choice of necklines – either v-necked or rounded but always with a collar. Some skirts had pleats while others were circular. I don’t think that the belts were at all regulation! I know that mine was wide black elastic. The cardigans were maroon wool. We wore blazers as well in the summer and always our berets when travelling to and from school – under threat of a detention if caught without wearing one. I wish that I had some photos of my winter uniform but unfortunately do not. Maroon serge pleated gymslips were worn in Years 1 and 2 and then maroon serge gored skirts were approved. Ties were always worn, shirts were long sleeved blue vyella. I also remember wearing a maroon gabardine hooded mac with a detachable woolen lining for the really cold months.”

In his letter to parents, at the end of the summer term in 1956, Headmaster Clayton showed an impressive grasp of female tailoring terminology in his description of the new girls; coat available from the ‘Outfitter’.

After his detailed description of its “gored back and attractive revers” and “shot-silk lining”, many parents felt compelled to part with 117/6d to see their daughters adorned in such quality apparel. It certainly seems a far cry from the Teflon-coated polyester uniform offerings available today from supermarkets among other places.

London may have been swinging, but detention was still inevitable for those caught making the journey to school without their cap or beret firmly in place.

Pictured above, a first trip to the Verulamium in St Albans in 1960. Photo supplied by Jennifer Ayto who describes herself as a “very old Grammarian” and who noted that the two teachers escorting the trip, Mr Morris and Miss Evans were later to become Mr and Mrs Morris!

Christopher Wheeler, pictured far right, remembers his uniform of 1965:

“This picture is of me at the back of my house in September 1965… my brother tells me that buying a uniform in 1958 was from a supplier who visited the school (this makes me laugh as that had all the style of the public school system where uniforms were certainly not and are still not sold through retailers….it shows how close the grammar schools were to the public schools in many ways in the 1950s). By my time Frank Hill in East Barnet had become the supplier of choice for school uniforms. I apologise for the ‘ghost’ on my picture. Put it down to the wonders of the Brownie 127 box camera in 1965.

I remember being mortified, as being tall I wore long trousers at Littlegrove Primary School (now Danegrove). However, my parents felt that might seem presumptuous when starting at the Grammar School, and hence forced me to be one of only five or six boys who wore shorts……thankfully that all changed by Christmas.”

Ros De La Bertauche (née Boswell) recalls the limitations of her 1960s uniform:

“The skirt was made from pure wire wool (my mother called it ‘serge’) and the blouse pulled straight out if you lifted your arms even a tiny bit (no stretch fabric in those days). We had a maroon wool beret, which we all folded into a quarter of a circle and pinned to the back of our heads, so that we didn’t get a detention for not wearing it. It shrunk in the rain to a very thick small size anyway. I had a blazer too, but I don’t think I wore it much.”

Surely a highlight in the school’s fashion history, the 1970s saw pupils taking to the skies on windy days as their collars caught the breeze.

These selection of photos were taken in the period referred to as a “mistake” in Mr Hurdman’s quote (below). The uniform regulations were rather lax and, as you can see, open to a wide range of interpretation. Jumpers could be blue, grey or maroon. Shirts could be white or pale blue and collars knew no bounds. Ties were for boys only and it seems a range of styles were acceptable. Frank Hill and Yvonnes were the official uniform suppliers, but Edmonton market was also a popular option.

“I arrived in the midst of the mini-skirt period and when most of the Sixth Form boys had shoulder length hair. Since then many other fashions such as midi-skirts, platform soles, Dr Martens leather boots and coloured hairstyles have come and gone. Some of you will remember the fuss made about trousers for girls. Those who planned the re-organisation of the school wished to allow pupils a choice of colour for their school uniform; experience proved that this was a mistake and maroon is once more the only colour allowed. I believe that the wheel has now turned full circle and that parents are again ready to support regulations about outdoor jackets, shoes and other matters and our modified uniform regulations reflect this belief.”

Mr Hurdman writing in 1987 for the previous reunion brochure

Believe it or not, most of the people shown here are wearing school uniform!

The early 1980s saw the rise of the label-conscious trend of ‘the Casuals’ which saw many students dressed like middle-aged golfers, in luxury sports brands such as Pringle, Lyle and Scott, Sergio Tacchini, Kappa and Lacoste, not to mention those timeless Italian brands of Gabbicci, and Leo Gemelli.

For those who attended the school during this era, students were able to take advantage of the relatively loose uniform regulations of the time and indulge in all the wonders of 1980s fashion. Blazers were virtually unheard of during this period replaced by snorkel parkas with fake-fur trim or by leather (“levva”) jackets. Jumpers were big, but hair was bigger. Ties were narrow, as were skirts. If a skirt wasn’t deemed narrow enough, then a girl’s sewing skills would be employed in taking it in. Judging by the quality of some of these alterations and the consequent repairs to the splits at the back of the skirts, most girls’ sewing skills left something to be desired!

When it came to school uniform, there was one true enforcer, as recalled by Anna Bowman (1982-89):

“Mrs Weller – silent but deadly – she’d float around looking a bit like Bod in her black cape, and she’d whisper at you to get rid of your jewellery. Very intimidating.”

Based upon the evidence, it would seem that Mrs Weller’s best efforts to smarten students up, were in vain.

The 1990s is decade that girls at East Barnet School were given the opportunity to wear trousers as part of the school uniform!

At some point in the 1990s the long-running grumble regarding girls and trousers was finally rewarded with girls being granted the option of wearing trousers. This decade also saw the return of a more strictly applied uniform code.

Gone was the loose guidance that had enabled the pupils of the 70s and 80s to indulge their colour preferences so freely. Shirts were to be white, jumpers and skirts, maroon and trousers, tights and shoes black.

Unfortunately, we have been unable to source more pictures representing the school in the 90s, if any alumni would like to contribute to this page, please send images to enquiries@eastbarnetschool.com.

Today’s school uniform has evolved quite a lot from its origins 75 years ago.

Whilst ties and badges remain much the same as the originals, black is now the dominant colour with the traditional maroon present only in the girls’ skirts (which may be substituted with black trousers if the girls so choose). Interestingly, despite having the option of wearing trousers, most girls continue to choose to wear a skirt.

The age old practice of buying uniform a couple of sizes too big, to allow for room for ‘growing into’ continues!