Friends and family gathered on Friday at the funeral of a dedicated council manager who died of a heart attack on February 6.

Dennis Doolan, 64, known as Den, worked for Epsom Council for 16 years and had been due to retire as the waste services controller at the Longmead Depot later this year.

Every day after opening the depot at 4am he would call staff on the phone to wake them up and make sure they were at work on time.

Council chief executive Francis Rutter paid tribute to him at a council meeting last week.

She said: "We are fairly sure he did this to them even when he was on holiday."

Ms Rutter said he joined the council as a road sweeper and worked his way up after serving with the Royal Marines and Royal Air Force.

She said: "He really went above and beyond the call of duty every day and it often went unnoticed because he did it quietly behind the scenes."

Council Jean Smith, who attended the funeral, said: "Dennis Doolan was a highly regarded manager of waste services.

"His family, friends and colleagues were shocked and saddened at his sudden death and he will be much missed."

Streetcare manager Samantha Whitehead said: "He was amazing and very dearly missed. You always expect him to be here still."

Mr Doolan was invited to the House of Commons in 2008 after retrieving MP Kate Hoey's commons pin when it fell down a drain in Epsom.