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Sunday school and ordinary school trips were a definite treat for us.

The Sunday school trip was once an excursion to Drayton Manor Park near Tamworth.

It may be a thriving amusement park now but back then it was what is said on the label, a park.

We had parks back at home, Bathpool, Tunstall, Burslem, Clough Hall and Hanley, why did we have to travel all that way to see a park with grass the same as our own.

School trips were a little more adventurous.

At Church school, at less than 11 years old and at six o clock in the morning we trudged all the way down to Goldenhill station and boarded a train on the Loop Line which then proceeded to travel towards Stoke.

We sat in a siding for about 2 hours until there was a gap for us to enter the main line.

Fair enough we then hurtled towards the Lake District as fast as the steam train would go.

We boarded a bus, saw Lake Windermere and got back on the bus to the train station.

Next stop was either Morecombe or Southport.

We tarried there for an hour or so, saw the sand and the promenade and then back on the train to Stoke.

I think we were back at Goldenhill station around 8 o’clock in the evening having spent our few shillings on I don’t know what.

While at Church school we were taken on a day trip to Stratford upon Avon.

We saw the theatre and Anne Hathaway’s cottage and the memorial to William Shakespeare in the church.

The only problem was, we hadn’t got a clue who the man was, we were only about 10 years old, perhaps it was a little bit too soon to be thrusting culture upon us.

That particular day was the first time that I had worn long trousers, up to then I had always worn shorts.

I had begged and pleaded with my mum to buy me the trousers and to let me wear them for the trip.

I had never felt so uncomfortable in all my life as I felt that day.

We went in a café in Union Street in Stratford for lunch and I sat with my trouser legs rolled up to the knees, the silly thing was I was the only boy there dressed like that, all the others still had their short trousers on.

We enjoyed our day and the memories are still there.