Popular retired headteacher and active community member Alison Dumont has died at home, aged 82, in the arms of her husband, after a two-year battle with
cancer.
Alison Dumont was born in Surrey, the middle of three children. As a young girl, she moved to Barrow-in-Furness, to live with her grandad, aunt, uncle and little sister following the death of her mother. The sandy beaches of Walney Island were the high point of Alison’s childhood.
Alison also loved school and was delighted to be accepted at Barrow Grammar School, where she became head girl.
She met her future husband, John Dumont, at a badminton club in Barrow, although he thought her a ‘terrible’ badminton player. He then supported her while she completed teacher training at Crewe.
After getting married, Alison taught maths at Ullswater Boys’ Secondary Modern. She was a popular teacher there, not just for her teaching skills but also because female teachers were still relatively unusual at Ullswater in those days — especially those who drove sports cars and wore the 1960s fashion of short skirts!
Alison and John lived in Penrith, then Askham, before settling in Kirkoswald, where they remained until the mid-1980s, bringing up their three children — Clare, Giles and Frances.
In Kirkoswald, she enjoyed being part of a village community, helping set up the village playgroup and establishing the brownie and cub dens.
She extended her social life by joining the Ladies’ Circle, where she was president for a time. This and other village activities resulted in many lifelong friendships.
As a way of thanking all their friends each year, she and John began holding a Boxing Day party, open to all. This became a legendary event that lasted over 50
years.
Their hospitality was renowned, with a never-ending stream of guests staying at their home — their door was always open.
Alison taught at both Kirkoswald and Renwick Primary schools, then moved to Morton Park Primary School in Carlisle before landing her dream job as head of Ivegill C of E School.
Her proudest achievement there was not the outstanding rating from Ofsted, but rather the raising of pupil numbers from 20 to 75.
She was ahead of her time, with Ivegill being one of the first schools in Cumbria to introduce Apple computers to the pupils. Another bold and innovative move was to set up a gifted and talented programme on Saturdays, attracting children from across the county.
Following her retirement, she and John began to travel extensively. Family caravan trips around Europe were swapped for more exotic travel, often off the beaten track, including to China, New Zealand, Canada, Sweden, Chile and the Galapagos Islands.
Alison took on lots of volunteer roles, including being a parent governor for Penrith’s Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, working on advisory panels for United Utilities and the Ambulance Trust and becoming an active member of the Penrith Credit Union.
With teaching in her blood, Alison was also a private tutor to many and a highly regarded and successful exam marker well into her 70s, enjoying many training weekends away with her daughter Frances, also a teacher.
Alison will be remembered for her gusto for a life very well lived, her wicked sense of humour and her deep friendships far and wide. Her infectious smile will be greatly missed.
She is survived by her sister Hilary and Hilary’s extended family, her husband John and their three children and partners.
She was also a very proud and loving granny to her six grandchildren, Sadie, Hugo, Oscar, Felix, Adam and Holly.
