Gone are the days of strict disciplinarians and stern faces ?

today?s house parents are like second mums, explains Katie Hughes
Susan Salmond of Ardveck School in Perthshire claims that, ?Being a matron is one

of the best jobs in the world.? She jokingly offers to meet me in her ?super-matron?

outfit of purple tights and cape ? a nod to the perception that school matrons can

do anything. And they probably can.
Fresh approach
Over the last 25 years, matrons have undergone a transformation. These days, they are seen zipping around grounds in buggies (Beachborough School, Northamptonshire), answering to the name of ?M? (Epsom College, Surrey), or clutching radios to communicate with colleagues, (Windlesham House School, Sussex). In some schools, they are even fondly known as ?Matey?. Changing nature
Matrons today help the homesick and exam-frazzled ? and wade through piles of washing swollen by 21st-century kit. They email, Skype and text information-hungry parents. And, when children have allergies to soaps or washing powder ? follow parental instructions to the letter. They also welcome a wider range of religions and nationalities in a loving environment ? while not relinquishing their hard-won respect. ?When I started, a matron was a strict disciplinarian ? not a motherly figure,? says Anne Armstrong, who has been a matron since 1977 at Aysgarth School, North Yorkshire, for 24 years. Susan Turnbull, her counterpart at Sunningdale School in Berkshire, agrees, ?We...