ALL CHANGE An interview with Margaret Imlah on her retirement Change, whether welcome or not, is inevitable in all our lives. It has become a theme of the COVID pandemic and brought considerable impacts with it. Over the past year, our capacity for change has been tested as well as our resilience to deal with it. At St George’s there has been an outstanding commitment to addressing this change positively and as a community. At the heart of that commitment there have been key figures, one of whom is most certainly Margaret Imlah. That will come as no surprise to anyone involved in the school over the past 32 years. Her complete and utter dedication to St George’s and its staff, pupils and wider community has been steadfast, surpassing even her own high standards in this past year to help address the challenges faced. It therefore feels very strange and sad to acknowledge that inevitably there must be change and, with that, the retirement of one of St G’s longest serving and most dedicated members of staff: Margaret Imlah, who retired in January 2021.
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ne might say she is “in with the bricks” but she certainly helped to get several of them put in over the years, with a significant number of successful building projects completed under her management. The thousands of meals, lunches and dinners she has organised and served with her dedicated teams; the accessibility to the school and safety of pupils and staff she has ensured come snow, rain or high wind; the financial due diligence she has shown and management across so many departments of school; and her unbelievable knowledge, memory for pupils, staff, parents and partners has been nothing short of miraculous. She is a tourde-force with a heart of gold; that is without question. Margaret joined St George’s School in 1988 as Domestic Bursar. She had been a pupil at Morrison’s Academy, Crieff, before going on to read History at the University of Aberdeen. She went from there to become a Domestic Bursar at the University of St Andrews, before joining St George’s. From Domestic Bursar she became Facilities Director, reporting directly to the Head, and her key responsibilities were substantial (to say the least): the School Estate, including Grounds, Buildings and Health, Safety and Accessibility; Catering, Domestic Work, Boarding, Risk Management, Facilities, Financial
Management and Strategy; and on-site responsibilities outside the school day and during school holidays. Margaret’s leadership in so many areas inevitably gave her a vital role in St George’s governance and leadership structure, with attendance at the Council and its committees and of the Senior Leadership Team, as well as a wide range of internal and external teams. Margaret’s influence and experience has permeated the school for 32 years. Life at St George’s without Margaret Imlah will be difficult to imagine and certainly will take some adjustment. How many people will be required to replace her is not quite clear yet! Margaret will remain on the OGA Committee and will help with the organisation of the archives, so we can be assured we will still have her around showing as much energy and enthusiasm as ever – we are certain of that. In all she has done for the school and its community Margaret has left a legacy that will continue for many, many years to
come. From all of those in our St G’s community, we thank her from the bottom of our hearts. We were delighted that Margaret agreed to be interviewed for this edition, to share some experiences of her career at St George’s.
Spring 2021 | 5
