SIXTY years is a long time to wait to confront your old teacher about a damning report card. But that’s exactly what 69-year-old Botley resident Maurice Belcher did at his school reunion on Friday.

Mr Belcher took along his report card from Wheatley Secondary School in the 1950s to show his former music teacher Jeffrey Babb, who also attended the reunion.

He was given 2.5 out of 25 for his attempts at the subject and got “the slipper” for his work, which was described in the report card as “disgusting”.

Mr Belcher said: “Jeffrey had a lot of successes, but I was not one of them.”

About 200 former students, some of whom had not seen each other for 50 years, turned up for the reunion. Some travelled from as far away as Australia and Canada to be at the event, which took place at their former school – now Wheatley Primary School.

Mr Babb, 87, said: “It is wonderful – absolutely wonderful – to be here. They were wonderful students, all of them.”

Wheatley Secondary School formed in 1951 but became a primary, and the secondary moved to Wheatley Park School in 1971.

Astrid Lancaster, 66, travelled from Calgary. She left the school in 1962 and moved to Canada in 1974.

She said: “I have come specifically for this because I have nothing but fond memories of Wheatley School and it kind of moulded me into who I am today.

“I am extremely happy and thankful and I wanted to come back and meet the people who had been part of that.

“It is surreal to be here again but it is fantastic to see everyone and just experience that warmth of people you have lost touch with.

“It is an opportunity to say some of the things you never got a chance to say all those years ago – to say how much you appreciated them back then.”

Sylvia Williams, 66, from Perth in Western Australia, said: “I have not seen some people for 50 years – it is amazing to be able to catch up with everyone.

“We have been discussing our marriages, our children – our grandchildren now – and where our lives have taken us over the years. It is very emotional.”

One of the school’s first students, June Williams, 75, said: “It is lovely because I do not think I have seen many of the people here since 1954.”

The reunion was the first for about 15 years and was organised after former students visited Mr Babb at his home in Hay-on-Wye two years ago.