A teacher who tragically lost her life in 2013 was one of the big winners at the inaugural Telegraph & Argus School Awards in March this year.

Tracey Askham was posthumously named Secondary Teacher of the Year at the award ceremony, which was held to recognise some of the unsung heroes of the district's schools system.

Mrs Askham, a teacher at Immanuel College, Thackley, died following an accident in a supermarket car park last August and her eldest daughter, Chantelle Aleksander, collected the award on her behalf.

After the ceremony Chantelle said the award was a true testament to how popular her mum was with her pupils and colleagues, who had flooded the T&A with nominations for the much-loved teacher after the categories were announced.

Held at Aagrah Midpoint, the awards were organised by the T&A in partnership with the University of Bradford and Bradford Council. With school achieve-ment often measured by league tables, the aim of the awards was to delve deeper into the school successes that sometimes go un-noticed in a sea of figures and tables.

Over 300 people, including nominees, sponsors and representatives from the Council and educational institutions were in attendance.

An invitation for nominations was made in the paper late last year, and hundreds of people wrote in to nominate teachers, support staff and pupils who they felt deserved more recognition for their devotion to improve their schools.

As well as awards for teachers and staff, schools were honoured for community involvement, science and technology and improvement.

Judges chose to honour Mrs Askham, who was 47 when she died and had worked at the school for 13 years, not just because of her impact on the pupils at Immanuel, but also for her charity work.

She was heavily involved in fundraising for Immanuel's sister school Minteh Kundeh Lower Basic School, in The Gambia, and fundraising in her name has continued after her death. A teacher's quarters currently being built thanks to her enthusiastic fundraising will be called Tracey Askham House.

After her death the school called her "an inspirational teacher and friend" and a "much valued member of staff."

A video about Mrs Askham was shown when nominations for her categories were announced and featured students emotion-ally talking about how she had influenced their lives.

Jane Tiller, head of Immanuel, said:

"What students said in that video really reflected what Tracey was like. Her death has left a huge hole in Immanuel College.

This win celebrates her life, she was the heart and soul of the school and has been since it opened."

Chantelle, 24, said the family was "immensely proud" of the nomination and win. She added: "This really reflects the sentiment 'you don't know what you've got until it's gone, ' and not just as a mother.

She has been a great teacher and made some great friendships. She was everyone's friend. It wasn't just about grand gestures. She knew what people were about and wanted to help them, and that extended to her work in the Gambia.

"It is amazing that the students took the time to put this together and do all the fundraising they have in her memory. She has obviously had a massive impact on their lives."

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Schools Awards Categories

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Schools Awards Nominations