1984: Miss Pat J Cleverley

Updated December 2020

Pat Cleverley was involved with the GA for many years before her Presidential year began. She was the second female teacher President of the GA after Sheila Jones in 1975.

Throughout the late 1970s and 80s before taking up the role, she represented the GA on a number of committees and also had a role in other aspects of both the GA and the RGS (which was also very common until more recently).
She has a strong link with the city of Bristol, which has provided a number of Presidents over the years, as mentioned in John Westaway's Presidential address, and still lives there to this day.

A memory from Rex Walford here:
"There was some fieldwork involved in the two Madingley conferences which I attended (1966 and 1967), I think) but my most memorable formative experience of that period was attending a week in 1968/1969 led by Dr C. Board (ISE) and Dr C.D. Morley (King's). It was run as an in-service course for teachers and based in Central London at a hall of residence in Cartwright Gardens. From memory, Rex Beddis, John Everson, Brian Fitzgerald, Pat Cleverley and Sheila Jones were also participants in the course...."

She was also mentioned and pictured in John Westaway's Presidential Address, which is shown below.

 

She had a long teaching career and was a member of the Secondary Schools Section Committee (now the SPC), which I also served on for almost 15 years, latterly as Secretary.  Several other GA Presidents have served on this committee over the years, and it makes a good proving ground perhaps for those who want to develop further in their involvement with the GA.

Pat taught geography (of course) at Withywood School in Bristol and was teaching at the time she was President - a rare thing as regular readers will know. 

The school itself closed in August 2008. Another colleague from the school also presented at Pat's conference.

Pat was also involved in the push for the GA to launch a journal for teachers which became 'Teaching Geography', first published from April 1975 as we have seen recently. More to come on that from other Presidents over time.

Pat wrote reviews of many books, which were published in 'Teaching Geography' over the years. I've similarly been asked to review books while on the SPC (as have other members) as well as helping judge the GA Publisher's Awards. This is all part of the ways that people can contribute to the work of the Association and support the staff at Solly Street. Pat also co-wrote a book on S E Asia.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/25285988?versionId=30484891

Miss Cleverley was made an honorary member of the Geographical Association, and remains so.

I was put in touch with Pat in September 2020, just ahead of the writing of blog posts about other Bristol-based Presidents. Thanks to John Westaway and Sheila Jones for some further information on Pat. John kindly put me in touch with Pat.

Pat sent me a lovely parcel of memorabilia in October 2020.

This included an original photograph - a version of the one which was in the journal and shown at the top of the page. Pat is on the left, Vic Dennison is in the middle, and Sheila Jones is on the right - all based in Bristol. This was taken in Sheffield.

Pat is shown in this image sitting between Sheila Jones and Bill Mead.

Image credit: Bryan Ledgard and the Geographical Association

Here are the details that Pat sent through to me:

Born: Bristol, February 1935

1946: 11+ exam passed and headed to Colston's Girls School

1954-8: University of Bristol

Open Entrance Scholarship to Geography department. Graduated in 1957 followed by PGCE.

By 1958, Pat was on the committee of the local branch of the GA, which was very influential, and involved working with people from all regions. She regularly attended the annual conference, which was held over New Years, before New Years Day became a holiday, and always at LSE.

1985: Pat sent me the programme from her conference, and a copy of her Presidential address, which was called 'Classroom Hot Spots Change Again".

Pat also spent a number of years on the RGS Geography committee, which was quite influential because of the people who served on it at the time, but she felt it was not particularly active. 

Pat was the first President from a comprehensive school (they were relatively new at the time - when I started at secondary school in 1982 they were using up the old stock of folders which said High School on them...) This made her something of an "alien species" at the RGS at the time.

When Pat was GA President she was working as the Deputy Head of an 1800 pupil 11-18 Comprehensive school, and she ended her career as a Headteacher. Very impressive considering the pressures that both rolls produce.

In her Presidential year, she remembers being very busy. She had invitation to other banches, and went to as many as she could. She also attended the SAGT conference.

She finished her letter by sending her best wishes for my own GA conference, and some memories of attending the memorial service for Rex Walford, her predecessor as President, and the Cathedral being full.

References

Fyfe, Elspeth M., et al. “Annual Report of the Geographical Association 1985.” Geography, vol. 71, no. 2, 1986, pp. 160–168. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40571092. Accessed 4 Aug. 2020.

Williams, Michael, et al. “Annual Report of the Geographical Association 1984.” Geography, vol. 70, no. 2, 1985, pp. 142–149. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40571969. Accessed 4 Aug. 2020.
Mentioned in: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/6100/1/6100_3452.PDF

If anyone knows of more information about Pat Cleverley and her time at the GA please get in touch.

Update: December 2020

In 2003, Chris Kington asked a number of former Presidents what had sparked their passion for geography. He lent me the letters and Pat had sent a response.

She says that her father had influenced here, and also the teacher she had in Years 9-11 at Colston's - she maintained contact with her until she died.

Many thanks to Chris Kington for the loan of the letters.