A MODEL of a pre-World War II steam merchant ship, the Caledonian Monarch, has been returned to its rightful owners, Minehead Middle School.

Former school cleaner, Eric Loseby, rescued the model from the rubbish bin 20 years ago and has returned it to the school after its loving restoration.

He said: “The model was built by a former pupil - either he had served as an officer on the ship, or his father had. “He presented it to the school many years ago, where it was kept for a long time in a glass cabinet in the school foyer. “I felt that as I’m not getting any younger, the safest place for the model to be now is back in the school.” Head teacher, Paul Rushforth, added: “The original ship was built in Glasgow in 1928, the same year as Minehead School, as it was known then, opened. “We would dearly love to know more about the story of who presented the original model to the school and anything about its history, which has sadly been lost in the mists of time. It would also be interesting to hear from anyone who recognises the model from their school days.”