My roots are firmly embedded in Cumbria, my mother was one of six siblings from Carlisle and my father was the thirteenth child of fourteen from West Cumberland.Educated at Workington Grammar I worked for the National Coal Board for eleven years before migrating to Australia as a ten-pound-Pom in 1966.The sixties were turbulent years for the coal industry, there were once 30 collieries operating in Cumberland but by 1966 there were only three.British Steel was also on the decline, so there was no work around West Cumberland.
Rather than joion the mass migration south I chose to emigrate. Australia had a 'Populate or perish' policy at the time and the assisted passage scheme was too good to overlook.Western Australia was undergoing a 'boom' period in the 60s, so I chose Perth.I am still here after 45 years, so consider my decision to have been a good one. Six weeks after I arrived I began work in the University of Western Australia's Central Administration and stayed there for 28 years. I am now retired with a grown up family all living in Prth.
But you never forget your roots. One of my grandchildren asked me what it was like growing up in England during WW2. I wrote her a short story about it and enjoyed writing it so much that with no writing background I decided to try and write a novel.And although I'd lived in Australia for over 40 years at the time, writing the short story revived so many memories of my early years that I decided to set my story in my native Cumberland and during the period I lived there, 1930s to 1960s.My romantic thriller was published in 2009.
Since I got my first computer in 1999 I have kept in touch with family and friends in England by email and with happenings in Cumbria by reading local newspapers online.
Allan Pritt
Perth, Western Australia.

Hi Irene,
Been a long time. Not sure where you are now or what you are doing. I do hope it is somewhere exotic and exciting. I can give you a rough run down of what has happened to myself.
After College i went upto Glasgow to work for my family. That was the end of my relationship with Jeanette. I worked for my family for 14 years before ironically being made redundant. I retrained and went into financial services just as the credit crunch started in late 2007. I have been a Bank Manager for the last 2 years in Dumfries. Happily married to my second wife Kirsty. Have 2 children Evie (6 yrs old) and Archie (18mths old). Please i'm intrigued to know what have you been doing with yourself and have anybody from Carlisle College been in touch with you