A Swindon headteacher has retired after 40 years of working in schools, including 35 years leading Goddard Park Community School.
Mike Welsh, 76, has been a headteacher in Swindon for 35 years and during his time at Goddard Park, in Park North, he has overseen more than 17,000 students.
He also helped establish Swindon’s first Children’s Centre and has recently been congratulated on his career by the Mayor of Swindon, Councillor Neil Hopkins.
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Mr Welsh said: "It's been quite a career. Coming from a lad from Gorse Hill, I've been very fortunate.
"After 40 years, it's difficult to say exactly how many children I've been a headteacher for, but it must be thousands.
"All these children have gone on to do brilliantly well, so that's wonderful to see. I had great teachers and coming to Park was fantastic."
He was elected national president of the National Association of Head Teachers in 2010.
In that role, he negotiated with Ed Balls and later Michael Gove, who were both secretaries of state for education.
Former pupils and parents still greet him as “Mr Welsh” when they see him around Swindon, including when he attended an open day visit to Cirencester College with his daughter when one of the teachers greeted him as “Mr Welsh”.
Mike said: "I get joy every time someone comes up to me. Sometimes the people I meet are in their 50s and sometimes they are in their 20s.
"Sometimes I meet former pupils, their parents and even their grandparents. They're always keen to tell me how their children are doing and what they've gone on to achieve."
Mike says that now he has retired he plans to continue to be a member of the Rotary Club of Swindon Old Town and Swindon Moose, and says he is a dedicated supporter of Swindon Town FC.
Mike is also working on writing his autobiography, The Passionate Head Teacher.
Alongside this, he is also the chair of the Desai School Trust, which supports a primary school serving 400 of the poorest children in a large slum in western Nairobi for 30 years.
He added: "It's been a wonderful time. I'm 76 now and I have three teenagers who are keen footballers and Army Cadets and they keep me very busy. But yes, it has been absolutely brilliant.
"I grew up in Gorse Hill and I love my town and want Swindon to continue to grow from strength to strength building on our fabulous history."
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