Spar retailer Raj Aggarwal has paid tribute to long-standing staff member Teresa Burke, who died suddenly yesterday.

Teresa, 59, was senior supervisor at Raj’s store in Hackenthorpe, near Sheffield, and had worked at the shop for nearly 30 years under Raj and the outlet’s previous owner Patrick Moon. As such, she was the longest-serving employee in the business.

Raj said: “Teresa was just a great person. She was honest, conscientious and meticulous in everything she did. The shop was her passion and she made sure it ran properly: she wouldn’t let reps mess her about and was always straight with me.

“If I was going wrong she’d always be the first to say ‘Raj, what are you playing at?’. As an employer you couldn’t ask for anything more.”