Ada Harvey (née Hayes) was the daughter of Sidney and Alice Hayes and sister of Fred Hayes, Esther Hayes and Tom Hayes. Ada was the eldest child and was born in 1910, two years after Sid and Alice moved into 5 Coronation Street. She was educated at Hardcastle's factory school. At eight years old, Ada started part-time at Hardcastle's Mill but her parents made her drop work to concentrate on her schooling. Ada became interested in teaching and at seventeen she returned to Hardcastle's factory school as a qualified teacher. Among her pupils was her little sister, Esther.