STUDENTS and staff at Tavistock College paid a moving tribute to 'inspirational' teacher Lesley Coupland, who died in a climbing accident last year, when they planted a tree and erected a plaque in her memory.

Mrs Coupland worked in the learning support department but was also a key figure in training youngsters for the Dartmoor Ten Tors challenge.

Family members and friends were among the guests at this special memorial event last Wednesday.

A walnut tree was planted in the college orchard by the students with a plaque and photograph placed next to the climbing wall in the sports hall, recognising Mrs Coupland's work as founder of the climbing club.

An experienced climber who loved the outdoors, Mrs Coupland, 59, had been teaching a novice at Dewerstone Rock near Shaugh Prior on September 28, 2008 when she fell 30ft to her death in a tragic accident. She left a husband, Jonathan, five sons and two grandchildren.

Student Fionne Marshall said she had lived her whole life on Dartmoor and had always wanted to do the Ten Tors challenge but it was not until she met Mrs Coupland that she got the encouragement she needed: 'In her quiet understated way she encouraged me, supporting me when the going got tough, simply smiling when we got there.

'She was my inspiration, she let me know that I wasn't simply a girl. I was me and I could do anything I set my heart to.

'Lesley is no longer with us but the seed she planted in so many young minds will spread and grow and when we, in our turn, seek to inspire and encourage those who will come after us, then we will see that her gift will never be lost.'

Luke Hilton Pierce said losing Mrs Coupland was one of the saddest things to happen to the college. Her work had touched the lives of many but she would also be remembered for standing atop each tor awaiting the arrival of Ten Tors students with a warm smile and pat on the back, camping down with the participants and her cooking.

'Getting up at 5am on a freezing Saturday morning to provide the teams with enough fuel to last the gruelling 45-mile route across the moors — sausages, beans fried eggs, all lovingly prepared — a true sentiment of just how much she cared about us and wanted us to succeed.'

Tributes were also paid by Rosie Culverhouse, who had worked with Mrs Coupland since 1992 in the learning support department and was instrumental in arranging the memorial event and memorial fund, and chairman of Tavistock College governors and mayor of Tavistock Mandy Govier.

Jonathan Coupland thanked everyone who had helped organise the event and taken part in it.

'Lesley was a philosopher and her view was that everyone should have the chance and opportunity to succeed — she was not interested in winning.

'It was no surprise that she ended up devoting her professional life to working with special needs because she took people who had not succeeded previously and gave them fresh opportunities to succeed. She opened them up to a world of outdoor pursuits.'