A POPULAR teacher has retired after dedicating 36 years to educating youngsters and adults in Wordsley.

Kath Tunnicliffe said a fond farewell to students and colleagues at The Wordsley School on Friday.

Throughout her successful career, Miss Tunnicliffe taught PE and IT and in the later diversified into community education.

She was instrumental in setting up the school's adult and community activity sector, Learning 4 Life and has helped to give thousands of adults the confidence and skills to use computers.

Miss Tunnicliffe, who is a competitive swimmer in her spare time, also developed a range of community-based pool sessions at the school, at a time when numerous facilities were closed down throughout the country.

Miss Tunnicliffe said: “I’ve had a privileged career, I’ve been particularly fortunate in the last few years to work in such a fantastic place I will miss my boss, colleagues and pupils at The Wordsley School and Learning4Life. For a long time I have enjoyed coming to work every single day."

Taking full advantage of her free time, the keen cyclist plans to ride around the backwaters of England and has already planned to visit Tuscany, Barcelona, Ecuador, Galapagos, New Orleans and Florida.

Headteacher, Mike Lambert, said: "Throughout her very successful career she has made a lasting difference to so many young people and many adults who have been supported and encouraged to further their own learning. We wish Kath well in all her future projects."