HEARTBROKEN staff at Prince Henry’s High School have paid tribute to site manager and head caretaker Nigel Hopkins who passed away at the weekend.
The former Prince Henry’s student and lifelong Evesham resident died on Sunday (October 30) and headteacher Dr Tony Evans said his passing left ‘a huge hole at the heart of the school’.
Dr Evans and senior members of staff met with Nigel’s devastated family on Monday (October 31) who agreed for the sad news to be made public.
Nigel joined the school’s site team in 2000, becoming head caretaker in 2010.
He played a key role in the day-to-day smooth running of Prince Henry’s, whether maintaining an immaculate school site, including decorating and refurbishing many of the classrooms during school holidays; overseeing students playing on the astro turf at lunchtime; undertaking snow clearance to keep the school operational when necessary; and making sure the school looked at its best for events such as Open Evenings and Speech Day.
He also will have been well-known to the many organisations who hired the school’s facilities, including the Henrician Theatre.
“I appreciate how much of a shock this has been to the whole school community,” said Dr Evans.
“Having spoken to staff before school, the news was shared with our students during Tutor Time and we all joined together in a minute’s silence to reflect on our many fond memories of Nigel and the massive contribution he made to Prince Henry’s.
“His passing leaves a huge hole at the very heart of the school and our thoughts and prayers are with Sarah, Jack, Max and the rest of his family and many friends.
“There is little more I can say, but we will be together to support one another through the next few days and weeks,” he added.
