We were a community school and the school was part of the Bower community
Recorded 4 weeks ago
About this recording
On 22 March 2026, Bower Primary School marked its 50th anniversary. Past and present pupils, along with former and current staff members, were invited to share their memories of the school.
Noss Primary School teacher Hilda Sutherland attended Bower Primary School from 1983 to 1990. She remembers it as a close-knit “family school” with just two classrooms.
With only two teachers and, for several years, no school secretary or clerical assistant, pupils were expected to help with practical tasks. Hilda recalls that by P7, answering the school phone became one of the pupils’ responsibilities.
Hilda’s memories include the routines of daily life at school. School dinners arrived from Halkirk School, and she remembers that “everything seemed to be covered in gravy.”
She also recalls PE lessons with Mrs Mowat in the small multi-purpose hall, where the limited space made activities more challenging.
Hilda also remembers the playground as a place where pupils were largely left to manage themselves. “There were no adults in the playground,” she explains, “so whenever there was a fight, you just went round the corner from the staffroom so they couldn’t see you.”
Above all, she remembers “We were a community school, and the school was part of the Bower community.”
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