These are the words of a former Tanbridge House School pupil of history teacher Mr Stephen Head, who remains critically ill following a car accident on Tuesday evening.

Lisa Fitch, 16, of Farhalls Crescent, Horsham, spoke out after being upset by what she called an 'unacceptable' comment in a County Times article criticising the school closing for a day.

Mr Head was her tutor for three years. "When we were moved to another tutor we visited him every day," she said.

"He would help you out and give advice and we would wind each other up - he would always have a laugh and joke with you.

"If I could call him anything I would call him a helpful and supportive friend."

Lisa, who works part-time at Smith and Wesson, said a colleague who had Mr Head as her tutor for two years some time ago was crying when she heard the news of his accident.

Her sister, Laura, 18, passed her history GCSE with the help of Mr Head. "She couldn't get to grips with history but with Mr Head her grades just shot up," Lisa said.

"She was having fun in the lessons, which helped her, and Mr Head knew how to to explain things to students and make every lesson fun."

Younger sister Danielle, 13, is still at Tanbridge and used to visit Mr Head with Lisa.

On Tuesday (October 6) evening the 38-year-old teacher at the Farthings Hill school was involved in an accident in Hove on his way home from work.

At around 5.45pm his blue Vauxhall Corsa car collided with a tree in Saddlescombe Road, Hove, and Mr Head was released from the car by firefighters using hydraulic and electric rescue equipment and rushed to Brighton's Royal Sussex County Hospital suffering life-threatening injuries.

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