A much-loved teacher has passed away following a short illness. Valerie Harris, who was head of music at the former Culcheth Hall School in Altrincham and head tutor at Altrincham Creative Theatre School (ACTS), died aged 86.
Valerie - known to everyone as Val - taught at Culcheth from 1972 for almost 20 years until her late husband Bryan Harris who was headmaster at the all-girls school retired in 1991. Val was well known in local music and drama circles and became a Freeman Burgess of Altrincham Court Leet for her services in helping young people.
She was further honoured by the Greater Manchester Drama Foundation for running GCSE drama courses in the area. Val was technically an ''Essex-girl'' born in 1936 in Leigh-on-Sea but was brought up in St Albans, Herts the eldest of five children to a company accountant and a school secretary.
