A LINNVALE Primary School retiree admits she didn't know how much she meant to people in the community until the day she retired after 25 years helping local youngsters take their first steps into education.

Alison King said farewell to staff and pupils after years of being known as the 'office lady' at the school.

A quarter of a century in her clerical role within the school meant she formed relationships with kids past and present around Linnvale.

Speaking to the Post, Alison - who spent 45 years working in local government in West Dunbartonshire - insisted having her retirement marked with a celebration of her years serving the school came as a shock.

She said: "I just thought I was doing my job. I was doing my job to the best that I could do it.

"And that last day was a revelation. I'm grateful to them forever.

"It was lovely and I can't thank them enough."

Alison has gone full circle, as she was a pupil at Linnvale herself during her youth.

She started her admin role at the school in 1999 and described how she has probably seen 'thousands' of children pass through it throughout the years.

And, still a Linnvale resident herself, she explained she rarely ventures out in the community without seeing a former pupil - despite sometimes finding it difficult to remember everyone's name!

She continued: "You feel like every child is your own. You just want to do the best for them."

"As you meet them as adults sometimes you can't remember their name, because you are talking to an adult now.

"A boy came to the door - he was a tradesman and had been asked to come to the school to do a job.

"He was buzzing, because he was coming back to his old school, and he came to the door and I could tell.

"I knew he was Linnvale, but I couldn't put a name to him because this was a young man and I'd seen him last as an 11-year-old."

Her last day, on Friday March 10, was celebrated with a special goodbye ceremony.

A West Dunbartonshire Council spokeperson told the Post: "Pupils at Linnvale Primary school held a special assembly to bid a fond farewell to celebrate and thank Alison King who is retiring after 25 years working at the school and 45 years at the council.

"We would like to thank Alison for everything she has done for the pupils, staff and families of Linnvale and we wish her a very long, happy and healthy retirement."

Alison added she doesn't yet have any concrete plans for retirement, and instead says she hopes to have 'plenty of holidays' and to take each day as it comes.

And reflecting on her 25 years, she finished: "A school office lady's job is to meet every challenge and move on.

"But I truly didn't know how much I meant to people until the day I walked out the door."