One school's experience

It’s early July 2004, and the history department of Harrogate Grammar School are chatting in the staff room enjoying a bit of spare time now that exam classes have disappeared. The subject of what the department will do next year when it comes to trips, speakers and special days comes up. Worn out NQT thinks she has had quite a busy year anyway when the HoD mentions the fact that in 1995 the history department had run a day for Yr 9 commemorating the 50th anniversary of VE day and it had been great. Now this sounds like fun to the NQT and she suggests they should do something similar again. Fast forward roughly a year to the 11th July 2005 and the whole of Key Stage 3, Year 12 and every member of staff are involved in a massive day to commemorate the 60th anniversary all paid for with £20,000 of lottery money. So what, you may very well ask, happened in the year between?