Glasgow Showmen pupils write new book about their culture

Youngsters at Thorntree Primary were appalled when they discovered the novel from publishing house Pearson was on the shelves in their school.

But they took matters into their own hands and worked with Pearson to write a new, positive tale that will now be a curriculum staple.

Justine Horn, acting head teacher at Thorntree Primary, said she could not be more proud of her pupils.

She said: "The original book was so inappropriate and full of stereotypes. It was racist.

"But this project has been great for our Showmen kids in giving them the chance to tell other young people about their life style and culture.

"They were absolutely ruthless with the editing and I am absolutely so proud of them because this was an important piece of work.

"They were riled up enough to really take charge of the narrative.

"To be listened to and for children to have a voice, particularly when something is being said about them, is so important for them - and for children up and down the country."

Christine Stirling, of the Showmen’s Guild of Great Britain, has worked as an education liaison officer for the past 30 years, battling to make improvements in Glasgow schools for showmen children and young people.

She is a familiar face in Thorntree Primary where she works with teachers and young people - and was instrumental in pushing for the new book to be written.

Christine said: "The book was very, very negative and portrayed us as a lot of cheats.

"It really was terrible."

In the original book, a young girl goes to a funfair and tries to win a doll at a coconut shy but the coconuts have all been glued down by the cheating con artist stall holder.

The attendant at the stall is not dressed properly in the illustrations and he's portrayed as eating and drinking as he serves his customers.

When Christine heard about the book from colleagues in English schools, she contacted Justine to ask if the book was in Thorntree.

Initially, Justine believed the school did not use the picture book - but then found it on the shelves in the library and took it out of use.

Christine also phoned Maureen McKenna, who was director of education in Glasgow until her retiral at Christmas, and Maureen had the book pulled from every school in the city.

Christine said: "It did not put us in a very good light but I am immensely proud of our young people who were having none of it.

"With the new book, they also were very vocal and said it as it was - they didn't like two elements and made sure those were changed.

"They are amazing."

Christine and Justine contacted Pearson, which immediately took the book out of circulation and looked to make amends.

They sent a writer to the school, in Greenfield in the East End, to interview pupils and work with them to create a positive, accurate depiction of Showmen life with correct terminology.

The new book, The Show Must Go On, is also illustrated by Mitch Miller, who is a Showman artist from Glasgow.

Around 10% of the school's roll are Showmen children with Thorntree often receiving placing requests from families who know their youngsters will be well supported.

Justine said: "We are a nurturing school and we are proactive in celebrating the values of the Showmen families as well.

"We always make sure the senior management team is easily contactable and we have a really good relationship with parents.

"We will always keep a school place available for children if the parents are open somewhere and the children go with them though to make sure their education isn't disrupted they might stay with gran or grandad, even more now parents will make sure their children are in school.

"They might go to another school while they are away, for example, they might be away from November to March on a winter site, but that happens less now.

"Parents are very, very keen that children get a good education and they know that children need good skills to say in the family business."

Thorntree will liaise with other schools if it knows a pupil is attending somewhere else and they are never marked as absent.

Showmen families have had to work hard in Glasgow and across Scotland to ensure children and young people have their needs met in schools.

Christine said: "We have come from the Dark Ages to where we are now but it was a battle.

"For years and years we scurried around, meeting this person and that person who would promise us change - but change was only ever temporary."

The situation finally improved under Frank Pignatelli, who was director of education at the former Strathclyde Region, and positive change continued under Maureen McKenna.

While it is now more common for school age children to stay with family members while their parents go on the road, children do still travel.

In previous years they might have gone to a fair, being away for as long as from March to August, and returned to find their place hadn't been held for them at their base school.

Work packs created to take with them were often not of good quality and children and young people would be left with gaps in their education.

Christine said: "It is now more common for children to stay at their base school. Education is very important to us now.

"To be a Showman now you need a proper education because you need a high level of education to be able to deal with the forms and health and safety and all the rest.

"But we also have accountants now and lawyer and doctors - education is at the forefront now and children are doing much better than I myself did when I was at school.

"Education is paramount now, as far as we are concerned, and you can see the importance of that at Thorntree where a negative has really become a positive."