A small correction to the above: on reflection I now strongly believe front row third from left to be my near neighbour in Prince's Crescent, Ivor Edwards, who introduced me to the modern miracle of television when I was about eight years old by inviting me to watch Popeye The Sailorman twice weekly in glorious monochrome. John Young may be the cheerful chappie in back row seventh from left. It's hard to be sure more than fifty years on!

Hello John! Now that I've seen your name I recall you as well - bit of a footballer if I remember rightly? I'm now pretty certain that, as mentioned above, the teacher in the picture next to you was Miss Webb. Nice to be getting some feedback from the photo at last! Incidentally, for those who remember me with the leg calipers, they were not, as most people thought, anything to do with polio but the result of surgery for clubfeet. I was free of them by my eleventh year and have lived a completely normal and active life since.

Hi Len, thank you for the response and how I appreciate this technology to be able to communicate with each other after 52 years! I was able to share this photograph with my mother (83), and immediately said it was Miss Webb.... Oh to have her memory! If you are interested, I have additional photographs from the Downs School of the following teams - Football, Swimming and Athletic. I will just need to know how to upload them to the site. You are correct about the football comment; after the Downs Middle School I went on to Fawcett Boys School and played for Brighton Boys, Sussex Boys and Southern England Boys. Did not turn pro, but finished up emigrating to Canada, and finally now reside in Charlotte, NC, USA. Additional names from the school photograph: Peter Mullen, 3rd row, 3rd from the left. David Yates, back row, 5th from the left.

DOWNS COUNTY PRIMARY CLASS It’s amazing how one small photo from your past can evoke so many wonderful memories. The teacher is Marion Hill, who later became Mrs Smith. Marion is the sister of Brian and Dick Hill (our vintage) who both went to Varndean. Miss Webb was reception class for 1954/1955 and Miss Hill took over for some reason? Then we had Miss Mongoll, Barbara Jenks, Ray Taylor in the annexe opposite the Jolly Brewer, Miss Parks and Miss Cox in 1959/1960. My recollection of class names is ?, Pat Smith, Margaret Syrett, John Young, ?, ?, Dave Yates (goalie and now GP in new Zealand), Roger Holden, Brian Reeve, John Horn, Suzanne Anderson, ?, Peter Mullen, Michael Thomas (later Dartnell), Maggie May, ?, ?, ?, Jeanette Leishman and twin sister??, Monica Eckert, Len, Heather Gifford ? (brother Jon), Jane Baker, Sandra Clamp, Susan Penfold, Margaret Carpenter, Rosemary Martin, ?, Jennifer Spells, Honor Patching, Barry Barstow (Hare & Hounds pub), ?, Ivor Edwards, ?, Richard West and Chris Mason (sister Viv). Other names from our year: Judith Beynon, Rosemary Oxley, Rosemary Payne, Barbara Shepherd, Christine Storrie, (legend parties!), Sally Cotton, Cynthia Penfold, Michael Fanstone (minister at a Gravesend church), Terence Green, Terence Ware, Hazel French, Janice Barnes, June Willett, Dave Marum, Graham Pitney, Roger Sweetman who died in 2007, Derek Palmer, ? Newman the caretaker’s son and Michael Stringer who recently retired as Rear Admiral from the Royal Navy. Anyone remember the Texan girl who briefly joined us in 1959/1960? I have lived and worked in Brighton all my life. My best job was taking Denes Natural Per Care into Sainsburys, Tesco, Waitrose and Safeway in the 1990s. I am now Governor Chair of Finance at Varndean College, trying to help repair the damage that the LSC inflicted on about 200 sixth form colleges, earlier this year. Michael Dartnell, FCCA

Uploading pictures is easy John. Just hit the Contribute button on any page then follow the instructions. This website is brilliantly user-friendly and Contribute will allow you to add a page including text and photos. Look forward to seeing your pix.

My goodness Michael, have you got a photographic memory or what? Now you mention all those names, I remember almost all of them, not least yourself including your change of surname. Memories come flooding back! Heather Kifford (I believe the K is correct) was my usual partner during the dreaded country dancing sessions. Margaret Carpenter was inordinately intelligent - I remember her flooring us all in a spelling competition by offering "charabanc", and once telling me not to be sarcastic - I didn't take offence because I didn't know what it meant! David Yates we used to call "lanky" because he was a head taller than most of us. I seem to recall Michael Fanstone having a distinctive very premature (!) grey streak in his dark hair. Christopher Mason was my favoured chess partner. It's just brilliant that this photo is drawing out some responses from folks featured in it. Hope to hear from more of you!

It's great to catch up with the photo and all the great comments. The teachers I can remember are Miss Jenks, Miss Parks, Miss Cox, Mr Taylor (choir master as well as form master) & Mr Foster (choir pianist about whom Mr Taylor wrote a song). I'm sure that when Mum comes up on Thursday we will remember more and I will tell you those. The people in the photo I'm not sure of many, but am sure that once again Mum will help me remember more - I hope she will anyway. I have some photos but at the moment, it being Christmas, they aren't easy to get at but when they are I will send some. It's great news that you don't have the calipers now Leonard. I, like many, imagined you wearing them for all of your life and was therefore very pleased that you had done so well in your life when I contacted you through work - SAL some time ago.

Hello Len, What a great photo - it took me ages to even find myself! I don't think it can possibly be as late as 1957 though. I would have said it was 1955 or 1954. I also think the teacher is Miss Webb. In 1957 we would have been in Miss Jenks' or Mr Taylor's class and I'm pretty sure that isn't Miss Jenks. Did we have some teachers for two years running? My memory is 1954 & 1955: Miss Webb, - then 1956: Miss Jenks, - then 1957 & 1958, Mr Taylor. Sometime in 1958 I moved to Portslade and Benfield School for my last two primary years, so that has helped to fix some things in my memory.

Hi again Len, reading the comments again I was quite surprised to see that you remembered Margaret Carpenter as giving the word 'charabanc' to the spelling bee because I had always thought that that word along with 'blancmange' was ones that my Mum had told me to use in those bees. She'll be most disappointed if I tell her what you have said. Never mind she won't be worried if I don't tell her, will she? It's still good to see all the comments.

The teacher is definitely not Miss Webb, I see her still and chat with her. She never married and ended up as a Headmistress. She is still going strong and is well into her 80s. She is still as lovely as she was then. Miss Hill is the teacher in the picture. As for Michael Dartnell, well thanks for not remembering me, obviously I didn't make much of an impression on you! I was in Miss Webb's class when I first started school. I remember Cynthia Penfold, I have been to a couple of reunions and  met up with her, she still looks the same. Miss Steers? was headmistress, in the Infants, then Mr Morgan? Mr Diben and Mr Philips (used to throw the blackboard rubber at you) were teachers,and Mrs Ayeling was the secretary. I'm going to throw a few names out now: Donna Jones, Eileen Beck, Heather Oxley, Susan Smith, Avril Foster (deceased), Pearl Berry, John Eden, David Lynn, John Menzies, Stewart Tate, Off now to hunt out old school photos - could be back later!

Just want to say that I seem to have started something by submitting the first Downs class picture to MYB&H - at least I think mine was the first! The subsequent flood of pics is really gratifying and they make a fine display. The latest ones have taken us into the 1960s - those youngsters! Great stuff: keep them coming!

We are looking at another Varndean reunion, (last one 1990!). Let me know if you wish to participate.