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John 'Jack' Lawton Obituary
Jack Lawton Obituary – 19th November 2025 – Former Chair of the SIA
We celebrate the life of John Scott Reynolds Lawton, known as Jack, who passed away peacefully in his sleep at home in Rugby on the 6th of November aged 89.
John, known as ‘Jack’ just like his father and grandfather before him, was born on 6th May 1936 in Deniliquin in the Riverina district of NSW to Father John Lawton, a State Government clerical worker, and Mother Dora, a nurse. Later they ran State Boys Homes which looked after local orphans & foster kids in remoter districts and as part of this they would be posted to various country towns in NSW. Jack has an older sister Pat 92 and a younger brother Rod 87 who are still living in Australia and going strong.
In 1939 the family moved to Kurnell Gardens west of Broken Hill in outback NSW to an old homestead acting as the local Boys Home. Later they moved into town to the main Boys’ Home in Chloride Street central Broken Hill. He remembers everyone living and playing together like one big family.
Jack’s life took a tragic turn in 1946 at the age of 10 when he broke his neck in a diving accident at the local swimming pool. He spent 2 years in hospital initially in Broken Hill then later to a children’s convalescent hospital in Sydney in the beachside suburb of Collaroy. Jack was completely paralysed initially but slowly gained some limited movement. He was well looked after and encouraged to take charge of his own destiny by amazing staff, learning to write again and trying to stand. With the huge distances involved in travel to Sydney from Broken Hill and then Mittagong where the family had moved to be closer, he only had limited visits from his loved ones. It wasn’t easy.
Jack’s strength of character was emerging clearly by this time. He was determined, optimistic, hard-working, intelligent, had a great sense of humour and nothing was going to hold him down. In returning home at 12 he was held back a year at school but still was able to catch up and pass the entrance exam to a selective high school in Parramatta, western Sydney.
Jack made great lifelong friends at high school and worked hard to excel as he knew he would have to do more than usual to keep up with his peers. With some of these friends Jack went on to Sydney University where he studied Law and later qualified as a Barrister and Solicitor. He became a legal officer in the NSW Lands Department in central Sydney.
Jack met Sue in 1959 at a friend’s party. Sue was a young, very homesick English girl, working as a trainee psychiatric nurse who had come to try and persuade her elder sister to return to England. Jack & Sue fell in love, and she agreed to stay until Jack had completed various legal exams. They married in 1960 and had 2 children Ruth and David soon after. Honouring his early commitment to Sue, they moved to England in 1965 as soon as they had money saved for the long journey by ship.
Jack secured a job at Kingston-on-Thames Borough Council and requalified as a solicitor in England. Jack later got promotion to a job in Windsor, and they bought their first house there a year later. In 1972 Jack again stepped up in his career again and moved to Rugby to start a new job as Assistant Town Clerk at Rugby Borough Council. Jack went on to become Town Clerk and then Chief Executive in 1979.
On retirement in 1996 Jack was the longest ever serving Chief Executive at Rugby and was made a Freeman of the Borough for his dedication, hard work and his passion for keeping local government strong and community based. He successfully fought off forced local government amalgamations, central government cuts and proposed absorption into the city of Coventry. During his tenure Rugby was prosperous with great business-council relationships, good services, good public facilities and well-run finances.
On retirement Jack became a volunteer working full-time for the Spinal Injuries Association. Using his legal and local government experience, he was the driving force behind raising funds & the planning to relocate the Association from a small office in North London to a new purpose-built modern centre in Milton Keynes. Jack became Vice Chair and then Chair of the Association and the new complex was opened by their patron Princess Anne in 2005. In 2013 at 77 yrs Jack stepped out of his full-time role and charity work and enjoyed a quiet life with Sue at their home in Rugby until his peaceful passing earlier this month.
Jack loved England, its traditions and history but was always a passionate Australian underneath. This was always apparent in his love of cricket especially at Ashes time. He loved returning to Australia when he could to see his family and old school and university friends. He was a dedicated husband and father, loved travel, theatre, music, sport and the company of great friends and family. Despite his obvious challenges he never complained, never identified as crippled, always had time for others, was passionate about improving the lives of the less fortunate and above all always kept a twinkle in his eye with an enormous sense of fun. He will be terribly missed by all that knew him.
Jack was a truly great man in every sense.
Donations in Jack’s memory can be made to the Spinal Injuries Association via the following link:
Jack’s reflections …
“Life not only continues after paralysis but it can be, and should be, meaningful, rewarding, enjoyable and fun.”
“SIA exists to help SCI people and their families make it so — to promote their full integration and participation in society, to encourage them to take control and lead independent lives. Strangely, I lived my life without knowing about spinal injury. I lived in a parallel world. I was tetraplegic for almost 50 years before meeting another SCI person like me or a spinal injuries consultant or visiting a spinal injuries hospital. I required surgery and Sue told me, I must have it done in a Spinal Injuries Unit because that’s what the SIA said. So that’s what I did. Two parallel worlds met at last. I learned things I should have known but was pleased I didn’t. I agree that a little learning is a dangerous thing but above all, ignorance is bliss.”