At a girls’ school in Pontypool, one former pupil remembered frequent visits to a teacher’s office and particularly recalled the ruler she carried, which, according to pupils, could be used with considerable force.
From a grammar school in the Rhondda, another former student recalled receiving the cane after becoming involved in a fight, maintaining many years later that the punishment had been undeserved.
At a comprehensive school in Worksop, memories centred on a teacher remembered for administering punishment with a slipper. Several former pupils described her as formidable and intimidating, while others recalled her reputation for strict discipline.
Former pupils of a Sheffield school remembered one teacher, who supervised swimming lessons, demonstrating techniques at the side of the pool while pupils watched. Others recalled receiving punishment with a slipper for talking during lessons.
Several former pupils from the same school remembered a teacher named Miss Kingdom and recalled occasions when disruptive pupils were punished physically in front of their classmates. Others remembered Miss Pilgrim as a strict teacher who frequently resorted to the slipper when pupils failed to follow instructions.
One former pupil recalled being taken by the ear to the headmistress’s office, where she received several strokes of the slipper over the desk. Reflecting many years later, she questioned whether the incident had affected her permanently.
At another Sheffield school, former pupils remembered a teacher named Miss Smith and the regular use of the cane, particularly across the hands.
Elsewhere, recollections were often brief but vivid. Former pupils remembered punishments administered by teachers and headmistresses in schools from Manchester to Milton Keynes, Scarborough to South Shields.
At a school in St Helens, one former pupil recalled repeated punishments for talking and disrupting lessons, while another remembered being sent to the deputy head after chewing gum in class and receiving the cane across the hand.
A former pupil from Cheadle Hulme simply recalled receiving the slipper “frequently” from the school matron.
Several memories concerned punishments narrowly avoided. One former pupil from Rotherham recalled escaping the cane on several occasions, while another from Huddersfield described being wrongly accused of taking paper from the wrong drawer and being physically punished despite protesting her innocence.
In South Shields, one former pupil recalled an occasion when an entire class was caned after pupils were heard singing in a corridor. Another remembered receiving punishment merely for laughing.
At a school in Clitheroe, one former pupil remembered receiving the cane after being caught smoking behind bicycle sheds, while another recalled the anxiety of waiting in line for punishment and finding the anticipation almost as upsetting as the punishment itself.
Memories from Nottingham included accounts of pupils attempting to minimise punishment by raising their hands higher to avoid the full force of the cane. Others listed smoking, writing on lavatory walls and truancy among the offences that resulted in corporal punishment.
