The CSTS Portal - for Croydon Secondary Technical School

April 2014: A CSTS Website Contact Email was received from 'Doreene' - a lady from the North-East of England. The email read:

I enjoy going to car boot sales, reading and bird watching.

At a car boot sale a few years ago I bought a small pair of binoculars:

The Binoculars

During a lull in bird activity I started to examine the glasses.

I noticed the binoculars were engraved with the letters "W.E.FLETCHER from C.S.T.S FORM IIF":

Click to enlarge

(Click over the image to enlarge)

After I googled the engraving, it eventually prompted me to contact you. It appears that Mr. Fletcher wrote the words for the school song.

Just out of pure curiosity - do you know if Mr. Fletcher had any connection to the north-east - as this was the area in which the binoculars turned up?

Also, if you know of anyone who contributed to them as a gift for Mr. Fletcher, they might be pleased to know they are still being used on a daily basis.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. Kind regards, Doreene.


It is quite remarkable that this CSTS-related item has surfaced after more than 50 years! Thanks to Doreene for getting in touch.

Now, we have to remember that there were 2 Mr. Fletchers at CSTS:

W.E. Fletcher, the author of the School Song - and P.G. Fletcher, the one who taught Maths. He was otherwise known as "Beaky".

W.E. Fletcher (according to the School Magazine of December 1961) 'gained a Headship of Department at a Kent Secondary Modern School' and left CSTS at the end of the Summer Term in 1961 - so clearly the engraving and the presentation pre-date this.

So, why the presentation of these binoculars from the boys in form IIF? Maybe as a gift as he was leaving CSTS? Perhaps was a keen bird watcher? Whatever the reason, the boys could have had a collection and bought him something appropriate. He must have been a popular chap as there could not have been much money around then, and binoculars would not have been cheap.

Perhaps any old-boys from the early years can throw some light on this?? If so, please contact Tim Ecott HERE.

For the technically minded (weren't we all??) the details of the binoculars are: