Lichfield’s Maple Hayes Dyslexia School Set to Celebrate 40 Years

Past pupils from Lichfield’s Maple Hayes Dyslexia School are being sought to help celebrate 40 years this summer.

Over 1000 pupils have now been welcomed through the doors of the school which was officially opened by the Right Honourable The Earl of Lichfield, Thomas Anson, on 12th June 1982.

And while the school is unable to host an official event, they are hoping to hear from the past cohort who would want to send in updates and achievements in their lives since leaving the school, and also create groups to meet independently in Lichfield to mark the occasion.

Dr Daryl Brown, Headteacher of Maple Hayes said: “It’s been such an achievement for the school to reach 40, and while we are unable to create the huge festivities we originally had in mind due to Covid, we still want to be able to mark it in some way somehow.

“While we have managed to keep in touch with some of our past pupils, many from the 1980s and 1990s we have unfortunately lost touch with. It would be great to hear about their lives now and so we can put together something to show how the school and our teaching methods have managed to transform their careers and outlook,” he said.

It was Daryl’s father Dr Neville Brown who opened the school alongside the support of his wife Brenda, and they sunk their life savings into launching the school just on the outskirts of Lichfield.

Dr Brown Senior dedicated his life to ensure that every child attending Maple Hayes Dyslexia School is given the right tools to succeed. He also developed the unique teaching system called the  ‘morphological approach’, which uses a series of icons to make a visual link between meaning and spelling instead of pupils being taught using phonics.

They also believe in using fountain pens, using cursive writing which helps make every letter feel different, and is a form of kinaesthetic learning. A child with dyslexia can learn correct spellings by the individual feel of each letter.

For past pupils to get in touch, they are encouraged to fill out their details on their website with this link https://maplehayeshallschool.squarespace.com/pastpupils