MALVERN St James continued its long association with ships and the Navy with a visit from the crew of Royal Navy submarine HMS Triumph.

Five crew members enjoyed a tour of the school with students including head girl Alice Porter and deputy head girl Evgeniya Malina.

In the afternoon the team was joined by Royal Marine Captain Tom Quinn, who gave a talk on careers in the Navy, while Lieutenant Hazel Anderson spoke to the girls about the roles available to women.

Malvern St James has had strong links with ships since 1936, when school founder Alice Baird launched the vessel British Confidence, a tanker responsible for delivering aviation supplies and petrol during the war.

The school has since adopted the names of various serving ships and submarines for competitive school events – with the current fleet at MSJ consisting of Gloucester, Illustrious, Trenchant and Triumph.

Headteacher Rosalind Hayes was delighted with the visit.

“It was a great privilege for the school that they have taken time out of their very busy schedule to meet the girls and to talk to them about life in the Navy,” she said.

HMS Triumph has been in deep maintenance for nearly five years, during which she has been refurbished and improved. Now equipped with state-of-the-art weapon systems, she is due to rejoin the seagoing fleet in 2010.

Coxwain Tim Clifton said: “We had a fantastic day and hope that a group of girls from Malvern St James will visit the submarine in Devonport next year, and experience being taken out to sea and submerge in the submarine.”