The Burston Strike School Rally parade sets off around the village. Picture: Denise Bradley
South Norfolk village gears up for annual strike school rally
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
4:22 PM
Union officials and supporters will gather at a south Norfolk village next weekend to commemorate the longest strike in British history.
The Burston Strike School rally will be held on Sunday, September 2 to mark an industrial dispute that was staged at the local school almost 100 years ago.
Teachers Tom and Kitty Higdon were dismissed from the Church of England County School in the village, near Diss, as a result of their union connections and set up an alternative known as The Strike School in 1914, which ran until 1939.
Supporters will follow the route of the village’s schoolchildren, who marched in support of the Higdons, with a parade from midday on September 2.
The rally will be held from 10.55am to 4.45pm in Church Green, Burston, and the morning speakers will be Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the PCS, and Clive Lewis, prospective parliamentary candidate for Labour in Norwich South.
In the afternoon, there will be speeches from Bob Crow, General Secretary of the RMT, and Cath Speight, national officer of Unite. Entertainment will be provided by the Red Flags, RMT Brass Band and Bleeding Hearts.
The school building remains to this day in Burston as a museum, which has held a rally since 1984.
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8 comments
I am aware of the Higdons` admirable stand against the feudal dominance and self-interest of the land-owning farmers. They were very brave people. Told about it in history lessons at school in Norwich. I sometimes think Norfolk hasn`t changed that much under the skin.
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Mad Brewer
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Third try. Ingo W has said what I would have said had I been granted access to the message board. Perhaps the server`s on strike?
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Mad Brewer
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Try again. Mr. Wagenknecht has replied for me.
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Mad Brewer
Thursday, August 23, 2012
The higdons might have been role models, but the assembled today have nothing in common with them. Party politics has seen to that.
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ingo wagenknecht
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Mad Brewer, just take a couple of minutes to read the Higdons' story, and see if you are of the same opinion then. You might learn something.
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Gerri
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Mad Brewer, just take a couple of minutes to read the Higdons' story, and see if you are of the same opinion then. You might learn something.
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Gerri
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Yes, the Higdons were role models; they stood up against petty tyrants and won the support of their local community over decades. We need more people like them today.
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Paul Cunningham
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Well that`s a role model to celebrate. Striking teachers. God help us all.
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Mad Brewer
Tuesday, August 21, 2012