A ‘family-like’ school in the south of the Isle of Man recently celebrated its 30th anniversary.

Scoill Phurt Le Moirrey in Port St Mary first welcomed its pupils through the door in September 1994, but officially opened on November 18 following a special ceremony.

The school had only 64 children, filling three classrooms.

The school marked the occasion by holding a ‘beetle drive’ event with pupils and parents in the main hall, while a special assembly was also held during school hours.

Certain members of the school’s current staff were also present at the opening ceremony 30 years ago; Year 1 teacher Adele Parsons has been leading the school’s choir since 1994, while education support teacher Rachel Crawley has also never left.

The third and final ever-present member of the school’s staff, site manager Steve Shepherd, is set to retire in February, and has said that the small number of children in the school makes it ‘seem like a family’.

Steve said: ‘The last 30 years have been great. You feel like a father to all of the children who have arrived here.

‘The young ones come in about three-foot off the floor, and it’s great to just see them grow up. It’s a really close community and it’s always been a nice environment.

‘As a caretaker at this school, you could write a list of things you want to do in the morning and then eventually just rip it up - you never know what the day will bring! The most important thing is to make sure everything's safe for the children; all the taps are working, all the toilets are clean and the fire exits are clear.

‘Whatever you need to do to make sure it’s safe and hygienic for the children, you make sure you do it.’

The school recently underwent a change of stewardship, with Simon Murphy taking the helm of headteacher in 2023 following the departure of Ange Callaghan after seven years.

Since July last year, Mr Murphy has also been in temporary charge of Rushen Primary School after its head and deputy were suddenly seconded.

Talking about the new headteacher, Steve said: ‘He’s come in and just carried on a lot of what Ange did. He could’ve come in and changed everything and all hell could’ve broken loose, but he’s let everything carry on as normal. He’s been great, and the school has been lucky because so was Ange.’

Asked how he felt about retiring in February, Steve added: ‘I don’t know how emotional it’s going to be, but it could be quite tough.

‘When I put up the Christmas decorations, I realised that it was the last time I would do it at the school, and it hit me a bit. It’s such a great school, and I’ll always be here to help should the new caretaker ever need me!’