|
|
 |
| |
Pioneer: Robin Dowsett in the playground |
Head who fought poverty
ROBIN Dowsett, who has died aged 70, was the headteacher of Eleanor Palmer School from 1976 to 1990.
He will be remembered for a life dedicated to helping others, be it the schoolchildren in his charge, or people living in horrendous poverty in the South African township of New Brighton.
He spent much time in his retirement raising funds to help people living thousands of miles away from his home.
Mr Dowsett grew up in Woodford Green, Essex, and went to Leyton County High School and became a mainstay of the student drama society, starring in An Inspector Calls alongside his fellow pupil, Derek Jacobi.
He enjoyed collecting cheese labels and swapping them with his many friends. He was known as “Cheese Label Charlie” and his sister Christine as “Cheese Label Mabel”. He also was a great fan of Doris Day and friends recall how pleased he was when he got a signed photo of her. As a 1950s teenager, rock and roll gripped his imagination – his friends remember him as a super jiver.
After working for a time in banks, he got a position for the charity Ockenden Venture. It helped look after displaced children from Poland and Germany following the war and it inspired him to become a teacher.
Mr Dowsett joined Netley Primary School in Euston in 1966 and stayed until 1976 when he became head of Eleanor Palmer, in Lupton Street. He proved to be hugely influential not only in his own school but across the borough.
He believed in fostering close links with other heads and sharing ideas. He also pioneered creating strong ties with local secondary schools, in his case Acland Burghley, to make the transition for children much easier.
And the fabric of the school was also vastly improved while he was there. When he joined, the junior school classes were stuck in supposedly temporary huts in the playground. They had been used long past their sell-by date and were riddled with asbestos.Mr Dowsett would not stand for it, and got parents and teachers to pull them down and rebuild them. A retired builder took on the role as foreman while chair of governors Janet Richardson became the quantity surveyor.
He eventually became a Camden schools inspector, using his experience more widely, but had to retire due to a serious back problem which required surgery.
Having met his partner, Nick, he lived in Brighton and the pair became involved in charity work through their church.
In 2005, they visited the South African township of New Brighton, which their church had forged links with, and were so moved by the poverty there they dedicated their time trying to help.
Mr Dowsett helped organise a tour of the UK by the township choir, raising £30,000 to cover the costs. They performed throughout the country and made a recording for the BBC.
Away from his work, he was a keen classical music buff. A month before his death from a brain tumour, he travelled from his home in Brighton to London to go to the opera for the last time.
He is survived by his partner, Nick Firrell.
DAN CARRIER |
 |
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
