A SCHOOL handyman is stepping down from his ladder and hanging up his paintbrushes after 63 years of service.

Denis Harding has been working at Chafyn Grove School since he was 20, taking over from his father who joined the school in the 1920s.

Headteacher Eddy Newton said: "He will be much missed at Chafyn for there is little on the site that he has not painted or fixed many times and he is an amusing storyteller. "Denis is also a great knitter and has knitted jumpers or hats for almost all the staff at some time.

"He has known nine headmasters - the first was apparently the best - but he is very discreet about his ranking of the others!"

Staff at the school held a small party to show Denis their appreciation, giving him a canvas wordchart created with words that they came up with when asked about Denis, a cheque from the governors, a cake and an inscribed hammer.

Denis now plans to catch with the jobs that need doing at home but the school will still have a link with the Hardings because his daughter, Christine, is continuing the family tradition by being the school's handyman.

Christine has been working in overalls with her dad for at least the last 16 years, painting and fixing things like lights, taps, drains, curtain rails and scholarship boards.

Past and present staff members at the school referred to him as a 'Chafyn Grove Legend', a 'truly generous man' who is 'one in a million'.