When Kathleen Allott was dying from cancer in Barnsley Hospice she had one last wish.

The school cleaner and cook simply wanted to hear the voices of the children she had helped look after for the past 27 years - she wanted to hear the school choir sing one last time.

And that is exactly what happened. A special CD was recorded for Kathleen and as she was in her bed, just days before she died, she tapped her foot in time with the music and smiled as she heard the young voices singing the songs and hymns she loved.

Her daughter Nicola Hancock admits she found it so moving the first time the music was played for Kathleen that she had to leave the room.

"It was very emotional and very very moving," she recalls. But she says her mum "absolutely loved it" and played the CD again and again telling her family, "it's lovely".

Kathleen, 61, from Birkwood Avenue, Cudworth, had three jobs at Birkwood Primary.

She cleaned in the mornings, helped to prepare lunch and went back hours later to clean again. She also attended all the school events and knew the name of every pupil and their parents.

She was diagnosed with lung cancer in November. She went into Barnsley hospice on April 5, the day before her birthday, and that is when she told of her dying wish.

At first staff at Birkwood Primary wondered if they could take all the children to the hospice, but realised it was not a practical option.

However when headteacher Julie Allen told school governor and We Are Barnsley DJ Tommy Taylor of her dilemma, he came up with the idea of recording the choir instead.

The Chronicle helped out by providing a mobile recording studio to visit the school to record them.