AFTER 28 years, Trevor Vaughan has taken his last assembly and final staff meeting at Ash Croft Primary School, Sinfin.

He is realistic enough to realise that at 60 he finds the job more physically demanding than previously and the time has come for him to leave.

Mr Vaughan knows he will miss the children but, while he said he is still "a very enthusiastic head", he is not as upset about going as he thought.

He said: "I could still carry on because I love my job and being with everyone here, but there comes a moment when you know it is the right thing to do.

"Besides, I have a host of things lined up for me to do at home, including growing all my own fruit and vegetables, which I have done for years.

"Teaching is very physically demanding and you need to be on top form to carry it out properly."

Over the years, Mr Vaughan, originally from Sheffield, has seen many changes at the school and in teaching, including the introduction of computers and calculators.

He said: "I came here from Reigate School in Mackworth, as deputy head, when Ash Croft was just three years old.

"At one point, we had 420 pupils in a school built for just 210, until half of them went to the new Stenson Fields Primary School.

"We have turned out some fantastic pupils, including those who themselves have gone on to become teachers.

"Increasingly, more and more former pupils are bringing their children here."

One of Mr Vaughan's proudest achievements was overseeing the recruitment and placement of 75 infant teachers in the city in the late 1990s.

The Government allocated an extra £1m to the city council to employ additional teachers to reduce infant class sizes to 30 or less.

"Interview panels had to be set up," recalled Mr Vaughan. "We had to settle the staff into their jobs and it's amazing the difference it made to infant teaching in the city."

Mr Vaughan will be swapping the school register for DIY tools in the near future and thinks it is unlikely that he will take up teaching again – even part-time.

He said: "This is a new chapter in my life story and I thoroughly enjoyed the last one."

On the other hand, Pauline Bradbury's retirement after 21 years in charge at Walbrook Nursery School will be short-lived.

Mrs Bradbury will spend a couple of days a week at the Middleton Street nursery school in September while acting head Karen Clarke settles in.

But she will still consider herself retired and is looking forward to spending time with her grandson, George, almost aged one, in Cheadle for two days a week.

Mrs Bradbury, who comes originally from Oldham, came to Derbyshire to work at Grange Primary, in Long Eaton, in 1975.

She took up the headship at Walbrook in 1987.

During her time at the school, it has undergone three inspections by teams from the Office for Standards in Education.

Each one has resulted in the school being judged as "outstanding" – the top grade given.

Mrs Bradbury, 59, said: "This year's inspection was a nice way in which to leave the school.

"The challenge will be for the school to remain at the same level.

"I am very proud of the achievements of the school over the year and it is due to the dedicated staff who make a very strong team."

Over the past few years, Mrs Bradbury has seen nursery schools develop further, giving advice and help to parents as children's centres and also to offer extended services before and after school.

She said: "I'm really going to miss being here full-time and I can't thank the parents enough for their support.

"There have been very many challenges over the years but I have always felt that the school is appreciated in the community.

"Many of our children have gone on to university, which isn't bad for an area that is not posh."