My mother, Elizabeth Hutchinson, who has died aged 78, was an inspiration to many, a force for good in her local community, and was a pioneering teacher in comprehensive education.
Born in Kirkby, Liverpool, she was the daughter of Frank and Annie Irlam. Her dad was headteacher at the local primary school and both Elizabeth and her brother, William, went on to be teachers at the local comprehensive school, Ruffwood. She taught English and by her early 30s was already deputy head at Ruffwood, then the largest comprehensive in Britain.
It was there she met Michael Hutchinson and left her job to marry, in 1969, and have me and my sister, Vanessa. Though she did not return to teaching in the classroom, she certainly did not stop working. She was, as one friend described it, “a model of how to organise yourself outside paid work”.
As we grew up in Sherwood, Nottingham, she ran the children’s book group, and was a school governor at Seely junior school for 25 years. She was an active member of the Labour party and a regular churchgoer at St Martin’s, Sherwood, founding the church newspaper, Sherwood Messenger, and writing most of the first 100 issues. She also helped Michael behind the scenes in his job as headteacher at Frank Wheldon school.
More recently she put her considerable effort and skills into working to end homelessness in Nottingham, chairing the charity Macedon (which merged with Nottingham Help the Homeless Organisation to become Framework). She didn’t just chair the organisation for 13 years, she was deeply committed to its work, regularly visiting the projects and also taking a keen interest in staff as well as the service users. When she retired in 2007 they named their accommodation in Sherwood Elizabeth House – something she was very proud of – as well as giving her a huge send-off at the council house.
Alongside all her work, she was a very good friend to many and loved hosting social events – there were many enjoyable evenings, parties and celebrations. She lived life to the full, was a fabulous mother and grandmother, and coped so well with the sadness of Michael’s sudden death in 1989, shortly after his retirement.
She is survived by me and Vanessa, and her five beloved grandchildren, Dylan, Florence, Patrick, Gabriel and Luke.
