A Derby school, packed full of superheroes, celebrates legacy of their much-loved late headteacher

Joining them on the walk were the Mayor of Derby, Alan Graves, Youth Mayor of Derby, Muhammad Muntsasir, local councillors for Alvaston South Tim Prosser, Alan Lindsey, Stephen Fowke and representatives from Transform Trust, Kate Harman Funeral Director at Central Co-op Funeral, Derby.

Jon has left a lasting impression on the school with the four colourful Learning Superheroes he created to help the children in his care to believe in themselves and truly understand what it means to be a great learner. Inspired by his love of Marvel, Jon’s design and animation of each character – Resilience, Reciprocity, Reflectiveness and Resourcefulness – and the meaning behind them are still used to encourage the children of this school to fall in love with learning, whilst gaining confidence and independence and building their resilience.

Former pupil Mohammed Muntsasir, Derby Youth Mayor and Allenton Community Primary School Alumni, was actually taught by Jon and was keen to express his appreciation:

“A paradigm of exemplary leadership. Charismatic, forbearing and inspiring. Those are just a few of the many things Mr Fordham was to me.

The qualities that I try to encompass in my role as Youth Mayor, I attribute to him and the example he originally set. He was not only passionate towards his commitment to education and his ethos but compassionate towards the students, the staff and all who had the pleasure to know him - leaving no one behind.

It was because of the spark he saw in me that I was able to ignite the trail to my leadership journey and to be able call myself the Youth Mayor of Derby today. Since learning of his passing, those memories have only further been engrained into me and he will always continue to be an inspiration to me and the leader I could only hope to become. Thank you, Mr Fordham, for everything and you will always be in our hearts.”

After the memory walk guests were invited to attend a reflective and age-sensitive assembly about Mr Fordham and his Superheroes where Head of School, Jacqui Trowsdale, talked about Jon and revealed the school’s legacy project to the room. Closing with one of Jon’s favourite songs ‘A sky full of stars’ by Coldplay, the children returned to class and visitors were invited to see the foundations of their superhero legacy project and hear more about it from year six school head pupils Olivia, Kenzie, Elizabeth and Bella who explained the meaning behind each of the four superheroes.

As Head of school, Jacqui Trowsdale explains:

“It’s been wonderful to welcome so many people here today to celebrate Jon and talk about our legacy project. Our ‘Superhero Zone’ was inspired by Jon’s Superhero creations and his passion for outdoor learning. This is going to be a dedicated space where our pupils come to learn and be curious. The children have been involved from the start and held a brainstorming session about the legacy project.

“We have been touched by the many people who have supported our legacy project with fundraising events and activities and the direct support we’ve had from businesses, particularly Rolls Royce who have helped clear the site and prepare for the next stage of development and Kate from Central Co-op Funeral.

“If anyone in the area would like to support us through fundraising or general support, please do contact our School Operations Manager Liam Williams at [email protected]

Rebecca Meredith, CEO of Transform Trust added:

“Transform is a family trust and Jon was a very special part of our family. We all miss him. I do want to acknowledge and thank Jacqui and Executive Headteacher Andrew Sharp for the way they have ensured this school has continued along its improvement journey throughout to secure a resounding Good from Ofsted this year. It is not easy, and we are so proud of the way staff and the wider community have come together in times of sadness. Today was reflective but it was also joyful. The legacy project is something I know Jon would have adored and it will be enjoyed by many generations of children to come.

Allenton Community Primary School is part of Transform Trust, an academy trust with kindness at its core. To find out more about Allenton Community Primary School, you can visit their website or follow them on X, and for more on Transform Trust, you can follow them on X and visit their website.