Tributes paid to care home matron Jane Hampton

Born and raised in Aberdeen, Jane was five years old when she and her family moved to Arbroath, where she attended Parkhouse Primary School from 1947 to 1952.

She later moved to Brechin, Angus, where she trained in nursing at Stracathro Hospital, aged just 17.

Jane was so young examiners almost didn’t allow her to sit the final exams, but after finding a loophole she managed to clear the age requirement by just seven days, and passed her finals in 1963.

In the same year, Jane was awarded Nurse of the Year at Stracathro Hospital, and started her midwifery training at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness.

While there, Jane and her colleagues held a Hogmanay party, where she met Chris, an educational officer in the army, based at nearby Fort George.

Jane and Chris married the following year on May 2, 1964 – not long after she had decided to leave Raigmore Hospital. Chris then left the Army and began teaching at a primary school in Glenrothes.

In 1966, their daughter Kim was born, followed by their son Paul in 1969.

From 1977 to 1985, Jane worked at Monklands Hospital, Airdrie, before she moved to Edinburgh and began working as a charge nurse in the elderly wards at Liberton Hospital.

She worked there until 1991, and took early retirement from the health service four years later.

One patient Jane had treated at Liberton was moved to Camilla House Nursing Home, in the Grange. Shortly afterwards, Jane applied for a part-time post there and in 1996 began working three days a week as a charge nurse.

After only a few months, she became full-time, then a deputy matron and then finally a matron manager.

Jane’s former boss Donna Macleod spoke fondly of her.

She said: “The main thing that Jane brought to the job was stability and calmness, which is very important when working with older people.”

Chris, Jane’s husband, paid tribute to his wife.

He said: “Jane was a woman of considerable principle. She worked for what she believed in. She was a star, very independent and a real trouper.”

At the age of 68, Jane retired due to ill health and spent more doing the things she loved – socialising, watching television and knitting.

Chris, who lived in Dalkeith with his wife for the past five years, added: “Due to multiple reasons, including heart and vascular problems, Jane became more and more housebound.”

When she passed away, at the age of 73, Jane was also a loving grandmother to her 15-year-old grandson Jamie.