Harpenden primary school head teacher retires after 20 years

The district’s longest-serving primary head teacher was showered with gifts from parents, staff and children when she said her final farewell to the school last week.

Anne Thomas, who has been at the helm of Roundwood Primary School for the past 20 years, retired at the end of the summer term.

Since she became head, the school has retained ‘outstanding’ school status from Ofsted and received am Eco Green Flag award.

To mark Miss Thomas’s retirement she received cards, gifts and pieces of artwork from parents, staff and children during a leaving assembly. Pupils decorated the school logo of three trees with their fingerprints.

She is handing over the reins to her long-standing deputy, Mrs Suzanne Webb, who has worked there for 15 years and attended the school as a child.

Roundwood Primary governor, Catherine Marke, said that the children would best remember the outgoing head for her story-telling and “willingness to dress up in funny outfits for charity”.

She went on: “The assembly went very well and she had some of her favourite songs played throughout; it got quite emotional.

“She was then in the playground and she was hugging people and wishing everyone well and a lot of the teachers were emotional that day.”

Catherine added: “Anne really loved the artwork, especially the school logo with fingerprints from every child; she was really touched by that.”