Frederick Frank Jarvis

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(8 September 1924 – 15 June 2020) was a British

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...

leader. He was

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

of the National Union of Students (NUS) from 1952 to 1954 and

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derive ...

of the

National Union of Teachers The National Union of Teachers (NUT; ) was a trade union for school teachers in England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It was a member of the Trades Union Congress. In March 2017, NUT members endorsed a proposed merger with ...

(NUT) from 1975 to 1989. Jarvis served as

President of the Trades Union Congress The President of the Trades Union Congress is a prominent but largely honorary position in British trade unionism. History Initially, the post of president was elected at the annual Trades Union Congress (TUC) itself, and would serve just for the ...

in 1987, the first

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

graduate to hold that position.

Early life and education

Jarvis was born in

West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancient ...

, at that time in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

but now part of the

London Borough of Newham The London Borough of Newham is a London boroughs, London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of County Borough of West Ham, West Ham and County Bor ...

, into a

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...

family. He retained his

Cockney Cockney is an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term "Cockney" has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End, or ...

accent as an adult. As a child, he attended

Plaistow Secondary School Plaistow County Grammar School, also known as "Plaistow Grammar" or "PGS", was a local authority mixed gender Grammar school established in 1945 and located on Prince Regent Lane (A112) in Plaistow, in the County Borough of West Ham and then ...

in what was then the

County Borough of West Ham West Ham was a local government district in the extreme south west of Essex from 1886 to 1965, forming part of the built-up area of London, although outside the County of London. It was immediately north of the River Thames and east of the Rive ...

in Essex. His father worked in a flour mill. His mother believed in the importance of education for her sons. At the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the family moved to

Wallasey Wallasey () is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England; until 1974, it was part of the historic county of Cheshire. It is situated at the mouth of the River Mersey, at the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Pe ...

where he attended Wallasey Grammar School and joined the Progressive Youth Movement. Later in the war, he joined the Army, taking part in the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

. In 1947, he attended

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

for a Diploma in Social Sciences, and went on to obtain a

BA (Hons) Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at

St Catherine's College, Oxford St Catherine's College (colloquially called St Catz or Catz) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford and is the newest college admitting both undergraduate and graduate students. Tracing its roots back to 1868 (although t ...

. He married Anne Colegrove, herself a vice-president of the NUS, in 1954.

Political activity

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

, Jarvis fought the safely-

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

seat of

on behalf of the Labour Party, and lost to the incumbent,

Ernest Marples Alfred Ernest Marples, Baron Marples, (9 December 1907 – 6 July 1978) was a British Conservative politician who served as Postmaster General (1957–1959) and Minister of Transport (1959–1964). As Postmaster General, he oversaw the intro ...

, by 15,705 votes.

Personal life

Jarvis was married to the former Anne Colegrove from 1954 to her death in 2007. They had two children. Jarvis was a lifelong supporter of

West Ham United Football Club West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, h ...

. A keen photographer, Jarvis had an exhibition of his work at the TUC Centre in 2010 in aid of the North London Hospice. In 2014 he published his autobiography ''You Never Know Your Luck''. Jarvis was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the

2015 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2015 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

. Jarvis died on 15 June 2020 at the age of 95.

Fred and Anne Jarvis Award

Named after Jarvis and his late wife, the Fred and Anne Jarvis Award was established in 2007 and presented annually by the NUT. Originally for individuals outside the NUT who have campaigned tirelessly for children and young people, in 2017 the award was given to a NUT member. From 2019 the award has been presented by the

National Education Union The National Education Union (NEU) is a trade union in the United Kingdom for school teachers, further education lecturers, education support staff and teaching assistants. It was formed by the amalgamation of the National Union of Teache ...

, which has succeeded the NUT. Winners include writers

Robin Alexander Robin Alexander is a British educationist and academic known particularly for championing the cause of primary education, for his leadership of the Cambridge Primary Review, and for his research and writing on education policy, culture, curric ...

Melissa Benn Melissa Ann Benn (born 1957) is a British journalist and writer. She is the daughter of Tony Benn and Caroline Benn. Biography Benn was born in Hammersmith, London. She has three brothers, including Hilary Benn and Stephen Benn, 3rd Viscount ...

, Alan Gibbons and Fiona Millar, former child prodigy Dr

Anne-Marie Imafidon Anne-Marie Osawemwenze Ore-Ofe Imafidon (born 24 June 1990) is a British-Nigerian computer scientist. Imafidon founded and became CEO of Stemettes in 2013, a social enterprise promoting women in STEM careers. She was a computing, mathematics a ...

MBE, England international

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

Marcus Rashford Marcus Rashford (born 31 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Manchester United and the England national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his explosive ath ...

MBE, former

Children's Laureate Children's Laureate, now known as the 'Waterstones Children's Laureate' is a prestigious position awarded in the United Kingdom once every two years to a "writer or illustrator of children's books to celebrate outstanding achievement in their fie ...

Michael Rosen Michael Wayne Rosen (born 7 May 1946) is a British children's author, poet, presenter, political columnist, broadcaster and activist who has written 140 books. He served as Children's Laureate from 2007 to 2009. Early life Michael Wayne Ro ...

and

Nobel Peace prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

laureate

Malala Yousafzai Malala Yousafzai ( ur, , , pronunciation: ; born 12 July 1997), is a Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Awarded when she was 17, she is the world's youngest Nobel Prize laureate, and the second Pa ...

Footnotes

References

*Biography, '' Who's Who'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Jarvis, Fred 1924 births 2020 deaths Alumni of St Catherine's College, Oxford Alumni of the University of Liverpool British Army personnel of World War II Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Comprehensive education General Secretaries of the National Union of Teachers Labour Party (UK) people Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from West Ham People from Wallasey Place of death missing Presidents of the National Union of Students (United Kingdom) Presidents of the Trades Union Congress British Army soldiers