'Much-loved' Black Country teacher dies after Covid-19 diagnosis
Tributes are being paid to a "much-loved and respected" Black Country teacher who has died after contracting coronavirus.
Kate Fox, who had taught at Thorns Collegiate Academy in Brierley Hill for more than 20 years, died in the early hours of Thursday morning.
The literacy teacher had underlying health conditions and had been admitted to hospital a week ago, the secondary school said in a letter sent out to parents yesterday.
Sir Mark Grundy, CEO of Shireland Collegiate Academy Trust, wrote: "It is with great sadness that I have to inform you of the death of Kate Fox one of our teachers of L4L at Thorns
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"Sadly Kate was admitted to hospital a week ago having been diagnosed with Covid-19 which had exacerbated her underlying heath-related issues.
"The medical workers did everything they could to treat Kate but her condition worsened and she passed away in the early hours of Thursday, April 2 2020.
"Kate worked at Thorns for over 20 years, was much loved and respected by her students and colleagues and will be very much missed by everyone.
"This is a tragic loss for our whole school community.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with her partner, her family and her friends.
"In any period of great sadness such as this, it is vital that we support each other to the best of our ability; if we can help in any way please do contact us, at any time.
"Please take care and we hope you are able to, in some way, enjoy the Easter break with your family and friends."
Councillor Ruth Buttery, Dudley Council's cabinet member for children’s services, has paid tribute to the much-loved teacher.
She said: "I would like to offer my most heartfelt and sincere sympathies to Kate’s family and friends at this very sad time.
"My thoughts are also with the Dudley borough school community, who today mourn the loss of a loved and respected teacher who was dedicated to her school and pupils.
"Dudley borough is blessed with a dedicated workforce and people from across the borough are playing their part in the fight against this virus.
"I want to thank the food workers, teachers, doctors, nurses, NHS staff, care staff, volunteers and many others who are playing their part.
"Dudley Council is working with partners to do all we can to fight this virus and keep our residents safe and I want to remind everyone to stay at home as much as possible to help protect the people of our community and reduce the pressure on our NHS."
