[Christopher Howell was at Caldecott from 1961 until 1971. Of musical fame, he now resides in Italy. In January 2016 Christopher was browsing through some recently added website photographs donated by David Carver. We were grateful to receive comments on some of the photos and his comments are recorded here with links [CURRENTLY BROKEN] to the photos.]
Memories of some Staff by Christopher Howell in relation to photos on the website: Jane Abbey
The lady sitting on the right who looks as if she’s doing “The Times” crossword is (I’m 90% sure) Mrs. Jane Abbey.
Jane Abbey was a sort of assistant to Joe Marshall in the Colt House in my last year or two. I think before that she had dealt with senior study girls and maybe was at Lacton Hall for a time. She stayed on after I left and I always made a point of seeing her when I visited Caldecott for my annual recitals. She was still assisting in the Colt House with at least the first of Joe Marshall’s successors (called Dick Edwards I think). Jane Abbey seemed a rather unlikely person to be at Caldecott, especially at the time when things (and children) were getting difficult. She spoke a very refined English and rather had the manner of a British consul’s wife. “Mr. Abbey” was an off-limits topic but she had spent a number of years in India, so perhaps she had actually been a diplomat’s wife or something similar. She had a certain something-or-other which meant that teenage boys, even difficult ones, usually respected her and were more likely than not to do what she wanted. I’d say she was certainly a stabilizing influence at an unstable time. Personally I remember talking to her a lot, she was a good person for a teenager developing an awareness of the outside world to discuss things like politics with. She was also very widely read. She took over the library after Miss Elizabeth’s retirement and was surely the natural person to do so. She had a teenage daughter (I think she was called Katie) who sometimes visited but was not part of the Community. I kept in touch with Jane Abbey for a time (Christmas card + a few lines), this faded out on her part sometime in the 1980s so I presume she died. I think I saw her at a reunion in the 1980s and she was looking rather haggard by then.
By the way, I don’t think this is a reunion, I don’t think Jane Abbey would have done “the Times” crossword oblivious of all around her at a reunion, I think this is just a group of staff enjoying a tea break. I seem to remember the lady sitting eating on the left, but no name.
The younger lady sitting on the steps on the left is probably Janis [Janice] Rayment (but I’m about 60% sure in this case). The person to confirm or deny this would obviously be Betty Rayment, a pity she doesn’t have email. My concert programmes show that Janis was at the CC in the year of the photo.
The gentleman with the beard is probably Mr. Hilton [Standing left]; I don’t remember his first name). Only 60% sure in this case too, but his wife Pauline has been identified in the following photo:-