She has seven children, ten grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren and seven great-great-grandchildren, but to hundreds of former pupils of Penyrheol’s Cwm Ifor School she is known as ‘Auntie Florrie’.

Born on Salop Street, Caerphilly town, on October 4, 1921, Florence Howarth has celebrated her 100th birthday.

As a child, she attended the Twyn School and later moved to Trecenydd, where she lived on Third Avenue for a number of years.

Florence married her late husband Archie in 1952, and the couple were together until Archie’s death in 1993, aged 73.

During the 1950s, Florence and Archie relocated to Yorkshire, where Archie worked in the pit. They lived there for six years before coming back to Caerphilly in 1959 and settling in Penyrheol, where Florence still lives.

In her younger days, Florence enjoyed singing and dancing, and was a regular in the clubs around Caerphilly, including the former 49 Club in Trecenydd.

She also enjoyed going on trips to Weymouth and Torquay, and drove a Morris 1100 – despite never passing her test.

In the late 1960s, Florence started working in the kitchen at Cwm Ifor school in Penyrheol, where she spent two decades.

Known by the schoolchildren as ‘Aunty Florrie’, Florence said she has seen many of the children grow up and become parents and grandparents themselves.

Marking her 100th birthday, Florence received a card from the Queen, while her family threw a surprise birthday party for her on Saturday, October 2.

When asked the secret to her longevity, Florence said: “I’m no different to anyone else”.