The obvious answer to the first question is “a wall” and when the wall in question happens to be one in the Burton Walks it is axiomatic that the plaque itself has a significance much greater than may be immediately obvious. Such a plaque is one which was removed during the repointing of the Grammar School’s Quadrangle Wall during the summer of 2025, not because it was insignificant – far from it – but because the wooden backboard on which it was mounted had deteriorated to such an extent that it needed to be replaced before the memorial could be put back where it came from.
That done, the plaque has now been restored to its place on the third pillar from the left when entering the Quad from The Walks and it is probably one which has attracted little attention since it was placed there in 1989, largely because those who know the story behind it have long since retired, only those who were serving as members of staff in the late 1980s and early 1990s being able to recall in any detail how it came to be put there in the first place. So what is the story behind this one?
One former member of staff who knows is now Loughborough Schools Foundation’s Chair of Governors, Simon Leese. He was resident housemaster in School House at the time the plaque was installed.
Whilst we were living in School House, carrier bags of assorted balls would appear on the doorstep at intervals, which turned out to be from an elderly spinster lady called Madge Hollingworth who regularly walked her small poodle, Jimmy, around the fields. The dog routinely retrieved dozens of balls from the hedge bottoms not recovered from PE lessons and lunchtime games.
Her visits to School House started to include treats for our children; she would never come in, but over the years we would visit her at her little house at the end of King Street. When Jimmy became ill, she was reluctant to ‘do the right thing’ and we promised we would sort the bills and buy her a replacement, ultimately a Yorkshire Terrier she named Bengie, after our son Ben. (There was an additional return trip to Birmingham from whence Bengie came when she realised she had left her handbag behind . . .)
When shortly afterwards she became unwell herself, she needed a lot of reassurance having never been in a hospital in her life, and no ‘intimate’ attention from anyone, let alone men . . . While she was away we looked after Bengie and grew quite fond of him. She sadly died a short time later.
Subsequently, it was suggested by the staff at the Grammar School that Madge and Jimmy’s unique service to the school should be commemorated and recognised with an appropriate memorial. Simon Leese himself, Chair of the Common Room at the time, made sure that that was what happened. Without him there might have been no plaque and no accompanying story and Madge and Jimmy’s contribution to the school might have never been known by more than a few. But now you know.
Piece written by Peter Sergeant (Former LGS Staff Member)
