Save the 93A bus
This summer as part of their learning, Elm (y3/4) class campaigned to save the 93A bus that goes through Kirkbride. They staged a protest in the village, and created Save our Bus posters. They wrote letters to the local bus company, and our MP. They used the bus to travel to Carlisle and sat with local residents to get their points of view, and then they were interviewed for our local papers and even appeared on the local television News. Good news! Raising this awareness saved the bus for another year and the Parish Council are delighted.
Bright Stars
This summer Elm class worked with local businessman Derek Tweddle from Tweddle Engineering, for an 8 week business development, as part of the Bright Stars Enterprise Initiative. This is run by the Centre for Performance and Leadership. The children won the Best example of Leadership category from over 60 schools that entered and were one of the 12 schools that were winners of an award. They called their business "Little Planters:Big Hearts," and were overwhelmed by support from local businesses Kirkbride Shop for a fruit hamper to raffle, Local residents to help us to plant, Sainsburys in Carlisle for seeds and compost, local farmer Alan Hedworth for top soil and Tweddle Engineering for providing the tyres to plant in. A group of our leadership team, made a presentation at Energus, Workington to highlight their achievements. The children's community garden, growing fruit and vegetables to sell at a market stall, raised over £300 for a local charity organisation Chrysalis care in Wigton.
Barbara Ann Jones Fund
Barbara Ann Jones was the daughter of Dr John Coulthard McVittie OBE, MB, CHB, DPH, in 2018 she passed away and left a legacy of £10,000. This was given to Kirkbride Primary School to use to enable former pupils to embark on further education.
The reason she left this money was due to the fact that her father always spoke so highly of his time at the school and when he lived in the village. He still has distant relatives that live in the village.
His family told us that he always talked about his time living in Kirkbride and how he would cycle to school - Dumfries Academy.
He lived at a house on Boundary Bank.
An excerpt from the British Medical Journal – 1st March 1980 (Obituaries)
“Dr John Coulthard McVittie
OBE, MB, CHB, DPH
Dr John McVittie, formerly a principal medical officer in the DHSS, died on 25th December after a long illness. He was 79.
John Coulthard McVittie graduated in medicine from Edinburgh University in 1924. He was one of the last survivors of the old Silicosis Medical Board, which he joined in 1930, transferring later to the Pneumoconiosis Medical Panel when it was formed in 1948. He spent part of his career in South Wales, first in Swansea and later in Cardiff, before being sent to headquarters in London where he was subsequently appointed principal medical officer with responsibility for the pneumoconiosis medical panels.
Dr McVittie was greatly respected and admired for the high quality of his work, and was liked by the miners whom he had to examine, as spontaneous tributes to his kindly interest still testify. He was able to continue his work on pneumoconiosis after retirement as he was appointed consultant to the Workman's Compensation Board in Nova Scotia, where he did much valuable work. He was appointed OBE in 1965. Dr McVittie was a modest, unassuming, good man who made friends easily.”
Barbara Ann Jones Fund Information