Sally Brown found herself sitting alone in an old familiar armchair, in a small room she knew so well. Closing her eyes, she wandered off into the echoes of the past. The overwhelming smell of cigarette smoke drifted back, loud chatter and noisy children filled the room.
Sally had first arrived in the Parents' Room over twenty years ago as a newly appointed Community Teacher. The Room was based in the Meadows Infant and Nursery School, on the sprawling, mainly council Meadows Estate. The role of Community Teacher carried a wide range of duties, the main one being the running of the Parents' Room within the school.
After teaching four to eight year olds for fifteen years, Sally realised that working with adults was going to be a very different experience.
The Room was mainly used by the parents of the children from the school, who came in for a cuppa before the children went to their respective classrooms. Others came to join in the adult education classes, talks and various activities, and some who needed help and support from difficult lives.
Greta, who was an older lady and a stalwart of the Room who had many ties to the school and was well respected throughout, and was rarely seen without a cigarette. Then there was Carol who had no self-confidence, Sara, who had agoraphobia, Casey who realised she had a problem with alcohol, and many other complex characters.
Sally's other duties included home visiting, where she encountered a dead guinea pig, and the affects of "waccy baccy".
Sally was to go on many journeys with the main occupants of the Room, developing a unique close bond and friendships that last to this day. There was fun and laughter along the way, with Christmas pantomimes, Christmas dinners, carnival parades, a wedding, a baptism in school and Greta's epic coach trips.
There was a fair share of emotional traumas that tugged at the heart strings, but usually resolved one way or the other.
Sally watched with pride as self-confidence grew and individuals began to have belief in themselves. The role of Community Teacher could command a yo-yo of emotions, from being driven to the brink of despair, to a feeling of pride, joy and achievement.
