My Goldings story began when I was driven through the front gates in the Albion lorry with seven other Barnardo boys who had also been boarded out in East Anglia. I had had 12 years with the same foster parents, who had become too old to cope with my care and attention when I left school at the age of 14, just at the end of the second world war. The date was the last day of August 1945.

Being plunged into a boarding school environment among 200 young men was something of an experience for someone who had been brought up in the wilds of Cambridgeshire. I spent the first weeks of my Goldings experience as a spare boy, as there was no room in the workshop of my choice. As a ‘’spare’’ you spent the days doing domestic chores and general work around the grounds. I soon settled into my routine in Mount Stephen house. I joined the choir, not just because I could sing but because there was an extra tanner a week on my pocket money. I was eventually given a place in the printing section and Mr. Amos (Slim) was my teacher. The printing trade was all very new to me so it was very interesting. Learning the ‘’case’’ and various type faces and the use of different type sizes was all very intriguing.

By the time I was 16 I had been promoted to Prefect James as opposed to boy James. This gave me certain privileges, one of which was that I was allowed to smoke! This was a very back-handed privilege, as I had never smoked before. I wish I had never started. I became, like many, a slave to nicotine. I’m pleased to say that I am no longer a slave to the drug!

After a few months as a prefect I was promoted to House Captain. I did my best to lead the house in all sports - football, cricket, table tennis, and athletics. Goldings was a wonderful place to be if you were interested in sports. You were encouraged by very experienced staff in all sports. By playing games for the school in the school team you got to travel quite a bit around Hertfordshire, playing at various venues.

I completed the last 9 months of my time there as School Captain. which was another great challenge. By the time I left I had almost completed learning my trade which was to see me through life, I had represented the school at football, cricket and table tennis, and I had been a ballboy at Wimbledon for four consecutive summers, three of them on the centre court. A picture of the ballboys of 1949 was recently published in the Guild Messenger and I could name 31 of the boys and staff in the picture. Also in that year I appeared on the radio programme ‘’In Town Tonight’’ where various people were interviewed who were as the programme says, in town tonight. The great Walt Disney was on the same programme, as were, I believe, the Andrew Sisters, who were just starting out.. I left Goldings in October 1949 to do 18 months National Service in the RAF. After I had been in the forces for 15 months the Government decided to increase National Service to two years, so I eventually became demobbed in October 1951. During my time in the RAF Barnardo’s wrote to me and invited me to return to Goldings print department to finish my apprenticeship. This I did. Also while in the forces I met the girl I was due to marry. It was actually at  one of the Goldings dances, and I happened to be down for the week-end to play cricket. She had fallen down the concrete steps outside to the staff entrance. I did my gallantry bit and carried her to sick bay for attention. I then pursued her and we became married on Boxing Day 1953, which means it will be our Golden Wedding anniversary this year. In the meantime I had become secretary of the Goldings Old Boys Association. We ran a football team in the local league, table tennis teams and snooker and billiards teams. During this time I continued to play cricket for the School. Joan wasn’t really into cricket, but she used to suffer it and came along to make teas for us when we were playing at home. Joan and I produced two children, one of each, and we now have six grandchildren.

When I left Goldings print department in 1952 I went to work for a small company in Cheshunt. This didn’t last too long as the firm went bankrupt. I then moved to work at the Hertfordshire Mercury in Hertford. I stayed with them for 10 years. The opportunity than arose for me to return to Goldings as an instructor of hand composing in the print department. In 1967 Barnardo’s closed Goldings and made all the staff redundant. However, the print section got together and pointed out to Barnardo’s what they would be losing if they lost the print department, bearing in mind that we could still train young lads in need. They built a purpose-built printing school in Hertford and I worked for them until the closure of the school about 12 years ago (27 years). I changed my job in the 60s to mechanical composing instructor, teaching Linotype, Monotype keyboard, and Monotype caster. This all came about when Mr. Millar (Dusty) died and Ron Stackwood was promoted to principal of the print department. Ron came and asked me to take over the typesetting department. I knew very little about the workings of the Monotype system, so they sent me to school in London.

I played cricket for Goldings until it closed and we lost the ground. I then played for McMullens, the local brewery. I also played table tennis for them. I took up refereeing soccer, and officiated around the county for 20 years, at the same time I joined the committee of the local league and was the referees’ secretary for 16 years. The old hips had started to play up by this time and I have now had four hip operations.

I now content myself to quite a lot of lawn bowls, a game which I have played on and off the about 45 years. Joan plays as well so we are able to go to matches together and play with or alongside each other. I am back in administration again, this time I am the secretary/treasurer of a two-division bowls league. The league is a summer league and we have 29 member clubs with 37 teams. We also run all the relevant competitions.

I would just like to say that I thoroughly enjoyed working for Barnardo’s and found it very rewarding trying to impart enough knowledge into the young men in my charge to enable them to earn a decent living. I am still in touch with a number of them.

© John (Jimmy) James

John "Jimmy" James passed away 20th August 2007

The photo I have inserted is Jim and Joan celebrating their ruby wedding anniversary on new year's eve 1993 the happy couple exchanged ruby rings as their token of love for each other. This had all started while Jimmy was at Goldings.