Salford Heroes – Valerie Ivison: “Salford is the centre of the world.”

“It was a dirty, filthy, bombed-out area to start with at the end of the war,” Valerie Ivison said as she recalled moving to Salford in 1950.

From those bleak beginnings, the 95-year-old has since developed a lifelong love for the city and devoted her career to improving the lives of young people around her. In return, the city has shown its appreciation for her years of hard work and the difference she has made.

Becoming the first ever female head teacher in the North of England, Valerie was committed to making changes at Hope Hall High School in Salford.

“I wanted to be a headteacher because of the things I knew had to be done,” she recounted.

Valerie remembered her first port of call: tackling the number of young girls at her school falling pregnant. In staff meetings, surrounded by senior male staff, she knew it would take significant work to change entrenched mindsets and provide the support the girls needed.

She explained that it was an uphill struggle to implement sex education lessons into the curriculum, but her determination paid off.

“Everybody thought I was just mental. But I wouldn’t shut up – and that’s how I persuaded them.”

Her persistence was rewarded and she recalled with pride the Chief Medical Officer’s reaction when she sought permission to introduce sex education lessons at the school.

“He stood up. Held his hand out and said: ‘Well done, Mrs Ivison, I’m right behind you.’”

With the heavily Catholic population at the time, Valerie encountered many complaints about her programme. Despite this, the Chief Medical Officer wanted to implement it across all schools which many of the Catholic, male head teachers refused to allow.

With the area’s heavily Catholic population at the time, Valerie faced many complaints about her programme. Despite this, the Chief Medical Officer wanted to implement it across all schools, which many of the Catholic, male head teachers refused to allow.

After four years of sex education in non-Catholic schools, the number of teenage pregnancies had dropped significantly compared with the Catholic schools in the city, underlining the importance of Valerie’s work.

Her passion for change didn’t stop there and extended beyond the school gates.

She said: “In the holidays, I went round knocking on doors, introducing myself to people, looking for work experience opportunities.

“I worked hard and eventually had a spread of opportunities for my children.”

Despite not being religious, Valerie recalled the passion she “burned with” and related it to a religious saying.
“Any good I can do, I will do it now, as I may not pass this way again,” she said.

Working in a mixed ability school, Valerie believed children should learn to work together regardless of their prospects or backgrounds and therefore created the first mixed group classes at her school. When Valerie first joined Hope Hall, children who struggled academically were not given lessons in maths because “teachers thought they weren’t good at it, so they shouldn’t be taught it.”

When she claimed the headship, this soon changed as equal opportunities became the norm for children under her leadership.

“If you wanted to be a doctor, you would get experience in a hospital. Before this, doctors had been kept separate from our schools; they went to university and didn’t know anything about the ordinary riffraff.”

In small groups, she would send the children out to look after the elderly, do their gardening, take them on walks, and play boules with them.

“It was about learning how to live in the world, not just at school. For example, I taught them to fill out tax forms. We were different to other schools, but at the end of it, our exam results were just as good as anywhere else.”

In retirement, Valerie continued to volunteer across the Salford community, taking on roles in a variety of local organisations.

She began volunteering at The Lowry 25 years ago, when it first opened at Salford Quays and has been a key contributor to many of the arts venue’s projects. Notably, she supported the team in raising £50,000 to fund school buses, which would take children to and from the Lowry on educational trips.

Alongside this, Valerie also helped establish Healthwatch in Salford and is a dedicated member of Salford’s carers group, and many other boards of influence.

From helping to change the national curriculum to becoming the first female head teacher in the North of England, Valerie has been a vital and passionate member of the community.

“Salford is the centre of the earth. Why would anyone want to leave?” she said, capturing her love for a city that has inspired her lifetime of dedication.