Position: Caretaker
School Days: 1985 (Christmas Special)-1992

Just another elderly, buff-coated caretaker on the surface, and if you cross Mr Griffiths you might certainly have thought he was cast from the same mould as his predecessors Mr Thomson and Mr Garfield. But scratch the surface and Eric Griffiths was cuddly underneath the gruff exterior - though he'd never admit it, Mr Griffiths was a lovely old man who genuinely liked the pupils of Grange Hill. Those he could trust he would take under his wing. An ex-Army man (though it was later revealed he didn't get further than the catering corps), Mr Griffiths took great pride in his work and was proud to serve his commanding officer Mrs McClusky. Work also provided solace from his "good lady" who didn't let him smoke his pipe in the house. Also an animal lover, he also put his job on the line to house Harriet the donkey in the grounds of Grange Hill to save her from certain death.

He would gladly have carried on at Grange Hill forever but when it was discovered Mr Griffiths was over pension age, Mrs Keele had no choice but to let him go...and he didn't take the news at all well.

Series 9: Mr Griffiths finds himself on the end of Ziggy and Robbie's repeated hair-brained attempts to get revenge on Imelda after she stuffed Ziggy's shirt with fibreglass. Gonch and Hollo catch Mr Griffiths puffing on his pipe and force him to join the anti-smoking campaign.

Series 10: Mr Griffiths resolves to house Harriet the donkey at Grange Hill when the plug is pulled on the funding at her donkey sanctuary. Enlisting the help of Ziggy, Robbie and Helen, he smuggles the animal into the school and houses her in an old shed. Inevitably, Harriet is soon discovered but Mrs McClusky agrees to let her stay temporarily.

Series 11: Bronson and Griffiths plan to intercept the turf war between Gonch and Mauler for their bike sheds protection racket, but it all descends into farce.

Series 12: Griffiths resolves to find out the identity of "the Grange Hill Ghost" - who turns out to be a pupil using the school for shelter. With Ziggy, Gonch, Robbie and Mauler, Griffiths organises an overnight stake-out to catch the Ghost red-handed.

Series 13: The arrival of shifty Rod, the new assistant caretaker, leaves Griffiths fearful for his job.

Series 15: Griffiths introduces Alice and Becky to the pleasures of gardening. When a routine visit from the LEA reveals Griffiths is over pensionable age, Mrs Keele is directed to sack him. He does not take the news well and his final days are spent moping around the school.