The husband of a Falmouth mother found drowned after going missing from her home last Friday has this week paid tribute to his wife.

Sharon Holden, nee Drew, went missing from her Mongleath Avenue home early last Friday, having last been seen by her family at around 7.50am.

On Saturday her body was pulled from the Helford River, just hours after police issued an appeal for help from members of the public to help trace her.

Her husband Terry told the Packet yesterday: “She was well liked in the area and was a local girl, Falmouth born and bred.”

He described his wife as “very bubbly,” adding that she worked for Cornwall county council at a children’s centre catering for the St Agnes and Perranporth area.

The body of 44-year-old Mrs Holden was found at Padgagarrack Cove, on the south side of the river opposite Durgan.

A passer-by spotted the body just before 12.45pm, at low tide, and contacted the coastguards, who arranged for the Falmouth inshore lifeboat to recover it.

Mr Holden said: “It looks like it was a tragic accident. She must have slipped – we don’t know and the police don’t know. Nobody saw it happen.”

He said last Friday had been his wife’s day off and nobody else had been at home at the time, but he believed that she had probably gone for a walk.

The post-mortem was carried out yesterday morning and formal identification was carried out at lunchtime.

A police spokesman described the cove as “isolated” and unreachable by a vehicle on land.

The body was brought back to Falmouth and suggestions that it might be that of Mrs Holden were later confirmed.

Mrs Holden’s black Vauxhall Astra was found at a car park in the same area.

The coroner has been informed and police officers have compiled a report. Officers are not treating the death as suspicious.

Funeral arrangements are being made through T Cooke and Mr Holden said the funeral was likely to take place towards the end of next week.

Alongside her husband Terry, Mrs Holden also leaves her daughter Kimberley and son Samual.