The Ambler Online

Here at Amble Towers we try to keep our ears to the ground for news from anyone with a link to the Friendliest Port, so imagine my excitement when I stumbled upon a Twitter discussion about Amble Middle School!

There was Mr Almond the science teacher being discussed alongside Other Interesting Matters, such as whether public meetings should be held online, the bleak future for the newspaper industry and the fact that it had stopped raining in Essex.

Here were a Marketing and PR consultant and a Photographer discussing fond memories of Amble in the not so distant past. So I invited Claire Shiels (Straughan) and Jamie Penfold to share their memories and update Ambler readers who may remember them.

Above: Jamie Penfold and Claire Shiels

So what’s been happening since you left Amble?
Claire: “After graduation, I joined the marketing team for law firm Eversheds, in Newcastle. I then took the brave step of deciding to move to London and take up a position in a law firm there, which just happened to be in the middle of defending Mohammed Al Fayed in the Al Fayed: Hamilton case!”

Claire married in 2003 and moved to her husband’s home city of Manchester before the birth of her daughter finally lured her back to Northumberland. “Manchester wasn’t where we wanted to bring up my little girl. I knew I wanted to be in Northumberland. It was my husband who chose Whittingham.”

Jamie: “I went to Portsmouth University to do BSc (Hons) Biology, then worked as an analyst with BT, first in Hampshire, and then in Newcastle. I married Joanne (Purvis) in 2000 and we set up home in the Royal Quays in North Shields where we have been ever since.”

Jamie left BT and helped set up a training company in Wallsend for a couple of years before becoming a business adviser with Business Link. “However I had designs about being my own boss and my passion for photography was starting to take over which is what I’ve been doing for the past 2 years now.”

And what’s all this about Mr Almond?
Jamie: “Mr Almond was a legend. I loved his science lessons. He made it fun and I think it’s probably his influence that got me interested in science and nature. He ran the bird club which was always popular possibly more to do with the trips out around Northumberland than with doing wordsearches in his classroom after school. Mrs Turnbull and Mr Almond would also take groups away for weekends. I remember freezing myself silly in the Peak District one Easter. Queuing at Alton Towers in a blizzard was not funny and neither was the bike ride on a disused railway line. I think they said it was character building.”

Both Claire and Jamie have gone on to set up their own businesses. Claire runs a successful PR company and earlier this year was awarded Chartered Marketer status, one of only 11 others in Northumberland. Her clients come from all over the world and all aspects of business. Jamie’s photography company is looking to expand from specialising in weddings to include corporate and commercial projects.

Any other Twitterers out there can follow @claireshiels, @jpphotographyuk and me @AnnaAtTheAmbler.

Anna Williams

The views expressed in The Ambler and The AmblerOnline are not necessarily the views of the Editorial Team.
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