Collingwood Primary School was established in July 1971 as a temporary school to ease the overcrowding problem being experienced at the nearby Austerville Primary School. Being built as a temporary measure, the school was constructed as prefab structures. Sadly the promised rebuild of the school did not materialise until the devastating storms of October 2017 destroyed the structures , prompting the Department of Education to finally start the rebuild processes. These processes were halted in the early stages of rebuild by the Coronavirus Pandemic. The Collingwood Family eagerly awaits the completion of the new state of the art school.
Presently the school is functioning from mobile structures which have been erected on the sportsfields.
Collingwood’s first official principal was Mr. Maharaj. His successors were Mr. A. Louis, Miss V Green Thompson and the present incumbent, Mr. C Chand. Our present principal is Mrs. H Greeves and deputy is Mrs. A Leaf. Our acting Head of Department is Mrs. N Bridjbal. The state paid staff compliment is 33 educators, 1 Admin Clerk and 1 General Assistant. There are SGB employees to compliment the state paid component.
Our present SGB chairperson is Miss Charlene Houghton.
Our learner component fluctuates between 1170 and 1200 annually. We service learners largely from the Wentworth , Umlazi and Lamontville communities.
We are a school that thrives on High Discipline.
The CA Chand Collingwood Story
My Collingwood journey began in January 1981 when I first joined the staff there as a level one educator.
Over the next forty years I was blessed to work alongside teaching greats such as Mr. T Louis, Mr. A Hulley, Mr. A Bonhomme, Mr. D Lawson, Mr. P Camphor, Mr. P May, Mr. P Bowler, Mrs. F Napier, Mrs. M Rose, etcetera who shaped and moulded my career into the phenomenal one that I had. It was working with these and future legendary people that gave rise to perhaps one of my most famous quotes: “The school buildings may be made of cardboard, but the human component are solid bricks “.
In 1985, I was promoted to the rank of Head of Department. I was given the task of looking after Mathematics, Afrikaans, Textbooks and Sport across the school. I served as HOD until 1999 when I was asked to assume the position of acting deputy principal. In the year 2000, I was appointed as principal of Collingwood Primary School, an appointment that I relished until January 2021 when I retired.
Collingwood Primary School was and remains a school of choice as is evidenced by the demand of many parents to have their children enrolled there despite the conditions of the buildings. This included the likes of several senior departmental officials who were aware of the quality of teaching and learning at our institution. Our school was renowned for its academics and it came as no surprise then as many of our learners became successful people in fields such as medicine, engineering, journalism, teaching, artisans, etcetera.
Collingwood and sport were synonymous with each other. I was shocked at the level of enthusiasm of teachers who would arrive at school as early as 6am to coach their respective teams. This level of enthusiasm lead to Collinwood almost always winning all codes of sport on offer over the years, including interschool championships, soccer, netball and hockey leagues. In later years, Collingwood excelled in rugby as well; the highlight being when our school played a curtain raiser match for a Sharks game at the Absa Stadium.
Outside of contact sport, we have also participated and performed admirably in the disciplines of Chess, Speech and Drama, Music Eistedfods, Drum Majorettes, Bridge Building, Dance, Recycling, etcetera.
I personally took a shine to soccer and was a part of the development of such soccer greats as Clinton Larsen, Bradley Grantham, Gary Goldstone(Jnr), David Bull, Calmin Clutters to name but a few.
My stay at Collingwood will always remain an integral part of my memories. We have been blessed with outstanding teachers, willing and able School Governing Bodies, supportive parents and phenomenal learners. I thank the various management teams and staff who served with me over the years and who have made my job an easy and memorable one. Together we have achieved the erecting of a mini hall, stands on our playing fields, a viable tuckshop, a shaded assembly area, a smooth running school with several protocols in place to promote quality teaching and learning, and many other successes, who can forget our beautiful proms, successful fundraising ventures, graduations, fun walks, sporting events etcetera.
I remember with affection those who have been called to rest over the years, some during my tenure as principal (May their souls rest in perfect peace).
It breaks my heart to think that the storms of 2017 ended perhaps what we can call the “Old Collingwood” and that the school since then must deliver from the temporary mobile classrooms which were erected on the playing fields. This is some five years later. It warms the heart to realise that Collingwood is still delivering despite these difficult conditions and I say to Mrs. Greeves and her loyal staff, “Well Done. Continue to keep our flag flying high”
Collingwood Forever