Harold Crowter 1948-2007

Harold Samuel Crowter was born in Coventry in August 1948, the only child of John and Grace Crowter. His entry into the world was not without difficulty and for a while there were genuine concerns for the health of his mother.

The young Harold excelled in his primary education at the Edgwick School in Foleshill, ultimately passing his 11 plus examinations with flying colours. His marks were so good that he was the only pupil at Edgewick that year to win a scholarship to King Henry VIII, Coventry’s leading independent school. His parents couldn’t afford the fees so the council stepped in to pay.

For the first few days at his new school, Harold felt like a fish out of water. The majority of his classmates came from wealthy families and it took a while for the new boy form the other side of town to make his mark. Harold was quickly streamed into the top sets across a range of subjects. However, his intelligence was not always used to further his studies. Operating under the nickname Sam, he acquired a reputation as a prankster. His victims were for the most part doddery school masters. Several stunts are worthy of mention, not least the lesson during which he cooked baked beams on a portable stove inside his desk. In later years, he also reminisced fondly about the time he invited a teacher to sit down on a chair he had deliberately sabotaged in a woodwork class.

A nasty dose of mumps disrupted Harold’s O-Levels and left him badly behind in his A-Level studies. But his natural gifting in mathematics saw him achieve grades sufficient to start as a trainee quantity surveyor with the Coventry City Corporation. He retained his appetite for fun, taking leading roles as both writer and performer in his department’s annual revue.

A few weeks after leaving school, Harold went on a young people’s holiday in Switzerland. On the shores of Lake Thun, he met and fell in love with a beautiful young secretary from Suffolk called Ruth Wiffen. The couple married in June 1969 and settled in Hinckley in Leicestershire. Within seven years, they had produced three children - two daughters and a son.

In 1972, Harold left local government and started to rise through the ranks of a local construction company, becoming Contracts Director at the age of 29. His experience of dealing with contractual claims seems to have inspired his eventual change of career.

His growing family and career took up most of his time, but in the evenings and at weekends he worked long hours to help build a new chapel for his local church where he was also a deacon, treasurer and the stand-in organist.

In the late seventies, Harold set up his own company in Hinckley, built three houses and then devoted himself to a gruelling period of study in pursuit of professional arbitration qualifications.

He loved work but was careful to take long holidays as a counter-balance. Every summer, from the early eighties onwards, he packed the family and a few belongings into a large Volvo before decamping for a month to the south of France. Here he really relaxed, acquiring a taste for red wine and many lasting friends.

Watching sport also became a major theme in Harold’s life. Every Saturday, in all weathers, he would take Gaynor, Ashleigh and Corinne to compete in cross-country, rugby, cricket and netball. He missed very few matches, becoming such a reliable supporter that he was sometimes asked to umpire games of cricket or run the line for rugby matches. Harold was a member of Coventry Rugby Club and was a regular at Twickenham and the Millennium Stadium for internationals. The Hong Kong Sevens became an annual pilgrimage in later years where, to his great delight, he could both network and spectate at the same time. Cricket was his favourite sport (to play and watch) and during stressful periods of work he would occasionally sneak off to Edgbaston if Warwickshire were playing at home. Holidays in the Caribbean often coincided with test matches in Barbados.

In the nineties, Harold’s company continued to grow. Offices were opened in London and Hong Kong. As an arbitrator, he acquired an international reputation, working across the continents. He was particularly proud to be elected Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in 1998. He was also made Freeman of the City of London and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Arbitrators.

Harold also devoted himself to training the next generation of arbitrators. He became a Course Director at the College of Estate Management at Reading University and helped other aspiring arbitrators as an author, lecturer and pupil-master. He was also a governor of the Coventry School Foundation (which runs King Henry VIII) and a keen supporter of the independent Christian School in South Wales which two of his grandchildren attend.

Faith in Jesus Christ was the bedrock of Harold’s life, a fact more apparent than ever in his final days. He was a significant contributor to Christian mission in the UK and abroad, visiting and supporting workers in France, Kenya and India as well as at home. He also sat on the board of a national charity which cares for elderly Christians.

Harold died peacefully at home in Leamington Spa on 2nd November 2007, little more than six months after being diagnosed with oesophageal cancer. Ruth and his three children were at his bedside. His final words were that he was “ready to go home”.