A "gentleman" and "role model" who spent his life working for the benefit of people in Porthleven and Helston, has died.

Vince Curnow, who lived at Shrubberies Hill in Porthleven, had been unwell for a number of years but continued to fight for causes he believed in.

Mr Curnow was elected onto Cornwall Council, then a county council, in November 2003 following the death of long-serving Porthleven representative David Richards.

He won the by-election with an impressive 75.5 per cent of the vote and remained on the council as an Independent member until 2009, when it became a unitary authority and Mr Curnow decided not to stand for re-election.

He also represented the port on Kerrier District Council up until 2007, when he stood down.

Andrew Wallis, his successor at the district council and subsequently as Cornwall Councillor, said it was "with great sadness" that he learnt of the news of Mr Curnow's death.

Mr Wallis said: "Vince was a strong voice for Porthleven and Helston at both councils. He always made sure the views of residents where heard.

"I learnt a lot off Vince when I first became a town and district councillor. He was an excellent role model.

"Porthleven has lost a great community leader."

Cornwall Councillor Neil Burden, who was leader of the Independent party when Mr Curnow served on the council, said: "He was a good man and a gentleman, which not all politicians are. He worked for his division and that was his prime aim.

"He was very discreet - the sort of person who would be working behind the scenes."

Mr Burden added that Mr Curnow did not follow the party line and instead voted for what he believed to be in the best interests of the people he represented.

"He was always there at meetings, but you didn't hear from him very much. He was more interested in seeing officers after the meeting to say, 'Why haven't you done my zebra crossing?'" said Mr Burden.

Mr Curnow was a retired secondary school headteacher and also taught at the Quarry School in Falmouth during the 1960s.

He continued his support of education while on the county council, as a member of its Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee, in particular campaigning for improvements to the buildings of Helston Community College.

One of his last achievements on the committee, shortly before he stood down, was to propose a report by council officers recommending that the school be put forward for the then-government's Building Schools for the Future programme, which subsequently proved successful although the funding was sadly withdrawn before any work could go ahead.

In latter years Mr Curnow was a vocal campaigner for charities connected to Parkinson's disease, which he himself had been diagnosed with, working closely with the West Cornwall branch of Parkinson's UK.

It became his mission to raise awareness of the disease and offer support, and he became the first chairman of a committee overseeing the Cornwall Alliance of Neural – Domain Organisations, or Can-Do for short. This was made up of 13 organisations covering conditions including Parkinson's Disease, multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease and Huntington's Disease, among others.

One of his greatest achievements in this work came in October 2012, when he organised a conference in Porthleven that welcomed Baroness Anita Gale, the chairman of the Lords and Commons all-party Parkinson's committee, as its main speaker.