Nostalgia, NAPE and Greenwich

As I advance further into my twilight years, I become more and more nostalgic about the past, so I hope you will excuse this bit of reminiscing about NAPE and its SE London branch at the University of Greenwich. It was established in 1986 at a time when NAPE had several regional associations and it continued to flourish through to 2017. It was unique in being a university-based association, drawing on a planning team with university tutors, local teachers, as well as students on the Primary BA course. This collaboration was critical to its success with former students maintaining their links with the University in part through their involvement in the committee - it was in every sense partnership in action, sustaining a network of social contacts, which breathed life into the local association, supported by a strong sense of commitment on the part of all those involved to the concept of NAPE SE London.

The programme of key-note speakers reads like a roll-call of some of the most influential figures of recent decades in primary education: Henry Pluckrose, Sir Tim Brighouse, Sir Peter Newsam, Prof. Len Marsh, Prof. Colin Richards, Margaret Meek Spencer, Prof. Teresa Cremin, Prof. Anna Craft, Shirley Clarke, Dame Alison Peacock, and Prof. Andrew Pollard are just some of the big names which have addressed conferences. Perhaps even more critically the local association provided a platform for local teachers to share aspects of good practice, thus playing a crucial role in promoting professional development in the region. Concerts in partnership with the University Choir and local school choirs were another creative feature which gave a lot of pleasure as well as providing an opportunity for children to perform alongside adults. We were also very pleased to host two of NAPE’s national conferences, one at the Avery Hill campus and one at the Greenwich Maritime campus.

What accounts for the demise of NAPE SE London? Several factors combined to close the doors. The key figures involved in setting it up in the first place and then sustaining it through its 31 years all retired from their university posts or from their teaching posts (with a few exceptions) and although some new faces emerged on the planning scene, work pressures made it increasingly difficult to give the time to NAPE which was needed. But there were other factors at work bound up with the changing landscape with schools in the context of academisation/federation structures taking on greater responsibility for organising their own professional development events. Increasing workload, a key issue for schools today, has also played its part in reducing participation in events of the kind we used to organise. Moreover, within the University, students shouldering mounting debts and taking on part-time work, have been more reluctant to support events which are not perceived as essential to their academic wellbeing.

But it was great while it lasted and now is not the time to mourn its demise. After all, 31 years is a long time for an organisation to thrive!