Frank Candlin, founding principal of the Oxford College of Further Education, has died, aged 93.

Mr Candlin, who received the OBE in 1977, was also a best-selling writer and created a journalism course at Cardiff that formed the basis of a national training scheme for journalists.

Born in Brighton in 1911, he came to Oxford in 1960 and created the college in cramped premises in Cowley Road.

The college moved to Oxpens in 1974, and by the time he retired in 1976, had grown from 500 to 10,000 students.

Oxford College merged with North Oxfordshire College in Banbury and Rycotewood College in Thame in August 2003 to form Oxford and Cherwell College. It now has more than 15,000 students and has campuses in Oxpens, Blackbird Leys and Banbury.

On his retirement, Mr Candlin said: "I would like to feel that we have managed to create and hold together a community of people working together in a common interest despite all the difficulties we have had."

His career in education began by teaching English at a grammar school in the North Riding of Yorkshire, where he met his wife Nora, who survives him.

He moved into further education during the Second World War, first in Wigan and then Cardiff, where he became head of the English and Liberal Studies department at the College of Technology -- now part of Cardiff University.

While at Cardiff, he began the first course of its kind for the training of journalists and freelance writers, which he followed up by writing books on the subjects in the Teach Yourself series.

He was one of the first writers on English as a Foreign Language and his Present Day English textbook series sold millions of copies worldwide.

As well as his career in education and writing, he played an active role in the community in Oxford and beyond.

He served as a governor at the Oxford College of Technology -- now Oxford Brookes University -- and was involved with the English Speaking Union and the British Council for many years, organising and teaching on summer schools in the city and overseas.

He belonged to the Churchill Lodge, the Clarendon Club Probus and the Oxford Rotary Club, as chairman of the international committee.

After retiring, he spent eight years as vice-president of the Royal Society of Arts, chairing its teaching of English committee and the examinations board.

After celebrating 60 years of marriage in 1997, he and his wife travelled around Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia.

They were among the first group of foreigners allowed to visit China after the end of the cultural revolution.

Mr Candlin died on March 29 and his funeral took place at St Peter's Church, Wolvercote on April 6.

He is also survived by his sons Christopher and Geoffrey, his daughter Margaret, grandchildren Halina-Jane, Angharad, Christian, Edward, Naomi and William and great-grandson Sebastian.