Laura and I were in a group of four Sure Start Managers in Lambeth who worked closely together to deliver that insipring programme. As the newest manager to the task I relied on her and my colleagues to answer my often idiotic questions. Laura always did and with a lot of good humour. She recognised how much support I needed and after a while we became good friends. She also had tough times and I like to think that we, as colleagues, gave back the support she gave to us.

It is such a pity that she will no longer be able to bring her considerable experience, energy and dedication to the children of Lambeth who need it so much.

I hope we can all get together to share our memories.