AN emotional memorial service was held for a head teacher described as “the centre of the community”.

Wendy Martin died on May 2 this year after 17 years in charge of Coates Primary School.

Pupils past and present filed into Coates’ Holy Trinity Church to pay their final respects as the 63-year-old was praised as “highly regarded amongst her peers and loved by the children at our school”.

The powerful service was followed by a school reception where multiple generations of children who had been taught by her shared precious memories of her work.

Colleagues now want a bench dedicated to Mrs Martin on the village green as a lasting tribute.

Parent governor Clare Hook said: “This was an event for the whole community.

“Wendy had been at the school for 17 years. Lots of children had left the school during her time there. A lot of people knew her because he was at the centre of the community.

“We are now trying to get a bench on the village green because it is nice for people to have something to remember her by.”

Mrs Martin trained in Nottingham and worked at a number of schools in England and Germany before she took over the reigns at Coates Primary School in 1993.

Later she became president of the Cambridgeshire branch of the National Association of Head Teachers and worked on the Cambridgeshire Primary Head Teachers Group, where she helped train aspiring principals.

And this year she became a Basic Skills Quality Mark Assessor, where she was responsible for helping other schools reach high standards.

Governors’ chair Garry Crackle said after her death: “Wendy took the school from strength to strength, achieving many awards and receiving recognition for her passion to introduce children to international relations.”

He also said: “She will be greatly missed by us all.”

Coates Primary School is currently being managed by Key Stage One manager Lindsey Boucher and Key Stage Two Manager Ros Wilson while governors look for Mrs Martin’s replacement.