Claire Chick, described by friends as “a lovely woman”, was allegedly murdered in the street in West Hoe, Plymouth by Paul Butler, who was arrested on Thursday after a manhunt
A university has paid an emotional tribute to one of its lecturers who was stabbed to death on a street.
Claire Chick, previously known as Claire Butler, was discovered with serious injuries on a street in West Hoe, Plymouth and, although she was taken to hospital, she later died on Wednesday.
A manhunt was launched to find the suspect, later named by police as 53-year-old Paul Butler, who was eventually arrested on suspicion of murder more than 20 miles away in Liskeard, Cornwall.
Now, Claire’s employer, University of Plymouth, has described the 48-year-old tutor’s “humour and warmth”. Paying tribute to the lecturer in adult nursing at the institution’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Plymouth’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Richard Davies said: “We have been shocked and saddened by the death of a much-loved member of our university community.”
He continued: “Having spoken with Claire’s colleagues, I know that her contribution to Plymouth was significant and deeply felt – she was a respected nurse, lecturer, and personal tutor, ensuring students were supported academically and pastorally. As Associate Head of School for International in our School of Nursing and Midwifery, she was closely involved in developing nursing programmes, students and academics in Europe, Africa and Asia.
“As a colleague, Claire’s humour and warmth will be dearly missed by academic and support staff. Pastoral support is in place for staff and students who knew Claire and have been affected by this tragic news, and further events are being organised to remember her. In the meantime, our thoughts are with Claire’s family and friends at this impossibly difficult time.”
Specially trained officers continue to support the woman’s family, Devon and Cornwall Police said. Neighbours in West Hoe yesterday described the nurse as “a lovely woman”. She leaves behind two children.
Claire’s family have released the following tribute to her: “We are absolutely devastated and broken at the loss of our beautiful caring mother Claire Chick. She was the most beautiful lively soul and was there for everyone.
“Everyone who knew our mum had so much positive words to say about her. She was the life and soul of any place where she was. She loved to dance and sing even though she was pretty bad at it she had no shame in doing it in front of any audience.
“We will never get over this as a family, she was our glue and our go-to. We won’t ever get the justice our mum deserves for this because no amount of justice will bring her back.
“We want to thank everyone for their kind words, and we invite anyone who knew her to share their memories of her. We also would like to remind the public she leaves behind five beautiful grandchildren who all refer to her as “a favourite grandma”. We ask you respect their privacy, and everyone remains respectful to them. She may be gone but her spirit will always remain alive. We love you mum, and we promise to make you proud.”
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Rob Smith said: “We continue to support Claire’s family at what is an extremely awful time for them. I would ask for their privacy to be respected and to allow them the space to grieve.
“While we continue with our enquiries into the incident, I would urge the public not to speculate but to contact us if they have any relevant information which has not yet been shared with us. You can do this by reporting through our Major Incident Public Portal here: https://mipp.police.uk/operation/50DC24S33-PO1″
