New Year Honours: Hundreds of unsung heroes receive recognition in latest list
More than 1,200 people from across the UK have made it on to this New Year’s honours list, with a lot of famous faces getting recognised.
But while Gareth Southgate, Stephen Fry and Keely Hodgkinson may make the headlines, hundreds of unsung heroes have been recognised for their services to the country’s communities.
Here’s a small selection of the honour recipients from around the UK.
‘A bereaved mother is not to be messed with’
The co-founders of a group supporting families affected by male violence have been made Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Year Honours.
Carole Gould and Julie Devey, co-founders of Killed Women, started campaigning after their daughters, Ellie Gould and Poppy Devey Waterhouse, were murdered in their homes.
(Left to right) Ellie Gould and Poppy Devey Waterhouse who were murdered in their homes. Pics: PA/West Yorkshire Police
Both daughters were killed when they ended relationships with their killers.
Now, Ms Gould and Ms Devey are campaigning to see an increase in the starting tariff for murders in the home, from 15 years to 25 years, the same as for killings outside the home.
They say it is “insulting and disrespectful to those women to say that their lives are worth 10 years less”.
“By accepting the OBEs it will continue to shine a light on our campaigning and will keep the many unjust issues surrounding violence against women and girls in the spotlight,” said the co-founders in a statement.
“A bereaved mother is not to be messed with.”
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Ivan Black began raising money after his brother Ian died from leukaemia. Pic: Ivan Black/Facebook
‘All I’ve ever wanted to do is help one person’
A man who raised more than £700,000 for cancer charities said being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) has pushed him to raise even more.
Ivan Black, 62, from Co Tyrone, began raising money after his brother Ian died from leukaemia aged 23.
He then lost his sister to breast cancer and his father to stomach cancer.
“All I’ve ever wanted to do is help one person,” he said.
“When I received the notification I couldn’t read the letter, I had tears in my eyes.”
Mr Black said he wanted to dedicate the honour to everyone who is battling cancer.
He said: “My brother, my sister, my father, this is all for them.
Joint youngest recipient
The joint-youngest person on the honours list is also being recognised for her charitable work in cancer.
18-year-old Mikayla Beames was diagnosed with cancer at just four years old.
She has now been awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) after founding Team Mikayla, a charity that grants the wishes of children suffering from cancer and has raised more than £300,000 to do so.
‘Working families are in need of support’
The founder of Pregnant Then Screwed, a parental rights organisation, said her MBE is “important recognition” of the struggles faced by working families.
Joeli Brearley, who is stepping down from the charity after ten years, said being recognised for her services to working families is “what it’s always been about”.
Joeli Brearley takes part in a protest in 2017. File pic: AP
“I think that people don’t really understand how much working families are in need of support right now,” she said.
“The childcare crisis, the issues of parental leave, low-paid work, there’s just so many problems.
Ms Brearley said the charity should “hold [Labour’s] feet to the fire” on its manifesto pledges as it reviews parental leave and introduces new employment rights.
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OBE for shipwreck hunting may boost mission
A shipwreck hunter who has been made an OBE hopes the honour will help bring a historic anchor back to the UK to commemorate the Windrush generation.
David Mearns is part of a team trying to bring the anchor of HMT Empire Windrush to the surface.
Jamaican men, mostly ex-Royal Air Force servicemen, pose for a photo aboard the HMT Empire Windrush in 1948. Pic: AP
The ship arrived in Essex in 1948, carrying primarily Caribbean migrants answering Britain’s call to address post-war labour shortages.
It sank off the coast of Algeria in 1954 and now, the Windrush Anchor Foundation is trying to recover its 1.5-tonne anchor to put it on permanent display.
“We want to recover that stern anchor, restore it, and bring it back to England and use it as a centrepiece in a public monument, a memorial to celebrate the contributions that the Windrush generations and their descendants have made to this country in terms of immigration and a positive force for multicultural Britain,” said the 66-year-old.
“I will volunteer my time gladly to make that project happen – it’s five years in the making, and hopefully this OBE will help raise the profile of that.
Mr Mearns said he has located 29 major shipwrecks in the past.
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