A stalwart of education in Croydon, Derek Loughborough, has died at the age of 81.

Mr Loughborough was chairman of the Education Committee for 10 years between 1978 and 1988.

He oversaw the ground breaking 11 to 16 and post sixteen organisation of Croydon schools.

And in partnership with Donald Naismith, he transformed education in Croydon with the introduction of a Croydon curriculum and pupil testing, something that was seen then as very controversial and became the model for national Conservative government policy.

He was first elected to Croydon Council in West Thornton in 1974, after a career in life assurance.

In 1988 he was made Mayor of Croydon before serving as chairman of the Environmental Health and consumer Services committee Education was always high on the agenda for him and he was governor of Archbishop Lanfranc School and Edenham High School.

And his desire to see the best in education for Croydon children extended from the classroom in his capacity as President of the Croydon Schools Football Association.

Away from education Mr Loughborough counted walking with his dog, gardening, photography and music among his favourite pastimes.

Tributes came pouring in from those who knew him or worked with him in Croydon.

Mrs Rowles, Chairman of Governors at Edenham High School, said she was “deeply saddened” to hear of Mr Loughborough’s death.

She added: “Mr Loughborough was a highly respected member of Edenham’s Governing Body and had been an active member since the school opened over 30 years ago.

“A governor of his standing will leave a huge void which will be extremely difficult to fill.

“On behalf of all of the Governing Body and the school I would like to extend her condolences to Mrs Loughborough and family.”

Andrew Pelling MP was deputy chairman under Mr Loughborough.

He said: “Derek was a Croydon politician who had the rare quality to be very much in touch with Croydon people. He lobbied effectively for the schools like Lanfranc that he remained involved with for decades. He was effective because he was on top of education issues.

“He was a lovely man who knew the people he represented - a rare gift.”

Mr Loughborough, who passed away on January 13, leaves behind a wife and two boys.