My father, John Coe, who has died aged 98, was an inspirational leader in the field of primary education. As he went from the classroom to the head teacher’s office and then on to inspector and senior adviser roles in Yorkshire and Oxfordshire, children and their teachers were at the forefront of his thoughts.
Born in Southwell, London, John was the only child of Dorothy (nee Lindsay) and Albert, who worked for Marconi. Evacuated during the second world war to Chichester, he returned after only one term to the new family home in Chelmsford, Essex, where he continued his education at King Edward VI grammar school. He spent the last year of the war training in South Africa as a navigator in the RAF and, although he saw no active service, the experience made him a lifelong pacifist.
John qualified as a primary teacher at the College of St Mark and St John in Chelsea, London, in 1949. After only three years at Chelmsford Cathedral school, John was recruited as head teacher at Roxford primary, a small, rural school in a village just outside Chelmsford.
In 1956, he became head teacher of Lawford Mead junior school in Chelmsford. There, his vision in introducing non-streamed classes and emphasising the central priority of the child was such that Lady Plowden visited the school while preparing her seminal 1967 report into primary education.
John was greatly influenced by the progressive ideals promoted by Christian Schiller at the Institute of Education, and he continued to champion this radical attitude to the way children are taught. He moved to Yorkshire in 1965 when he became an HMI and then, in 1969, became senior adviser for primary education in Oxfordshire for 16 years, working latterly with Sir Tim Brighouse. Both counties were considered to be beacons of excellence in the primary sector during my father’s time in office.
John also studied for a master’s degree in education at the University of Bristol, graduating in 1984. A four-year spell as director of primary teacher training at the Institute of Education in London followed, and then a five-year period as senior lecturer at Oxford Brookes University.
In 1980, John had co-founded the National Association for Primary Education, which continues to be influential in educational and political spheres. He launched their quarterly magazine, Primary First, and took great pride in being the editor for many years.
As a young man, John was an accomplished painter and sculptor. He continued to draw and to paint watercolours, especially when holidaying in his beloved Ravello in Italy. He was a fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts, and a supporter of the Labour party.
In 1948, John married Pamela Lewis. During a three-year illness, he nursed her at home until her death in 2005.Their elder daughter, my sister Lindsay, who followed my father into primary education, died in 2002. He is survived by me.
