Pride in Peterborough: Top teachers, NHS staff and brave passers-by - more local heroes you nominated - Part 3

Star Teacher or Childcarer

- WINNER: Mike Schofield, Stanground Academy. Mr Schofield, a teacher at Stanground Academy, has lead the work to raise more than £1,400 for a 24-hour access community defibrillator which could help saves lives in the local area and the academy handed over a cheque to Gemma’s Hearts, a charity that helps provide these lifesaving public defibrillators, at the start of the school term.

Mr Schofield has been part of Stanground Academy since 2004 and is currently a design and technology teacher. During his time at the academy, Mr Schofield has organised a series of community and charity work.

Mr Schofield has recently been nominated for Pearson’s national Secondary Teacher of the Year Award and over the last few years has raised funds for, organised and managed an academy-based food bank which has supported hundreds of families; set up the academy’s memorial garden; cooked multiple staff breakfasts, raising over £6,000 for local charities and raised awareness of the Peterborough branch of the Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Other finalists:

- Annabel Murcott. Annabel’s nomination stated: “Not only does this amazing lady give so much of herself to her students she encourages building self confidence and self belief to all her students at all ages.

- Lisa Mitchell & Hanna Senior, Arthur Mellows College. These two arts and textiles teachers from Arthur Mellows Village College have become headband heroes, making “multiple hundreds” of headbands and laundry bags for key workers on the frontline. Within weeks the ladies co-ordinated a huge community response.

- Stars Day Nurseries during the pandemic kept a central hub nursery open and staff volunteered to work to ensure that the children were kept safe. This allowed the parents in the NHS and other key workers to continue working without having to juggle childcare and worry about knowing their children were safe.

NHS Hero Award,sponsored by Anglia Ruskin University Peterborough

WINNERS: Chloe Spencer and Ben Hawkins. From the frontline to the zipline and putting their fears to one side they took part in a zipwire fundraiser for The Ambulance Staff Centre (TASC) in the Summer. The pair, who are both terrified of heights, faced a zip wire that is 222 metres high. Prioritising their ‘green family’ is something that’s very important to Ben and Chloe. All money raised for The Ambulance Staff Centre from their JustGiving page, goes towards helping ambulance staff with their mental and physical health. They both raised a huge £3,300 with Gift Aid which will provide much-needed support to over 50 members of staff.

- Emma Stones AND AMY ROSSER were nominated by Millie Stevens –she simply said; “I would like to nominate my amazing friends Emma Stones and Amy Rosser who always work hard as part of the NHS, always keeping positive and doing what they can to help others and take care of them.”

- Nadeem Ismail is a pharmacist at the critical care unit at Peterborough City Hospital. His nominator said Nadeem has organised food deliveries to staff and also gone above and beyond in reaching out to his friends and network of local business to see if they could donate goods and services that would benefit the staff and patients in critical care.

Peterborough’s Sporting Hero

WINNER: Sarah Short Sarah’s nominator said: “Sarah deserves this award because of her unwavering support to the local running community during lockdown and covid restrictions. Despite working full-time, Sarah managed to be a great inspiration to many runners from local running clubs, and people she works with, by encouraging people to get out and take part in a wide variety of running challenges. Sarah has also always been very involved with volunteering at our local parkrun at Ferry Meadows, making everyone welcome and being encouraging.

“Parkrun has been life-changing for many local people who have discovered that runners come in all shapes, sizes or speeds and can be part of a wonderful global running community. Sarah suffered a serious ankle injury and had months of rehabilitation before she could run again, but she was determined to get back to running and be part of the community she loves. She probably doesn’t realise how inspirational she is to so many people.”

Other finalists were:

- Dalton Grant was nominated for Lets Get Moving Lift Off which offers a taste of sports, taste of athletIc training, special needs, etc. He was invited to bring the event to Peterborough by his nominator which happened on her daughter’s birthday in July at Central Park.

His nominator said: “Everyone came, some of them weren’t even aware of sport. Dalton was there for the kids. I was absolutely blown away – he connected with each and everyone.”

- Annabel Murcott Another nomination for the amazing Anna who is a Tae Kwon Do 7th Dan World Master (and World Champion), and runs several clubs.

The Big Thank You Award

WINNERS: Jennifer Taylor and Luke Avis are two Market Deeping friends who saved stranger’s life using CPR after he collapsed in the street. If it wasn’t for the actions of these two friends, the event would have had a different outcome. The duo have been awarded a British Heart Foundation Heart Hero Award.

Finalists were:

- SERV (Service for Emergency Response Volunteers)Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. Since 2011 the volunteers of SERV, also known as the Bloodrunners, have been providing a free essential service to local NHS hospitals, air ambulance services, hospices, pharmacies and human donor milk banks by transporting blood, blood products, patient blood samples, medicines, medical equipment and donated human milk.

- ROBERT SUTER. His nominator said: “Rob stepped up during the lockdown and ran a grocery service for those who were shielding, elderly and anyone else who needed it. He’d collect your shopping list, drive to the supermarket, shop for your groceries and then deliver them back to you.

Rob also ran a “cab for jabs” service, taking those who couldn’t drive for their covid vaccines.

- Ashley Rice and Danny Chaffe rescued an 87-year-old driver who had a ‘miraculous’ escape after a crash on a busy road in Peterborough and pulled him to safety.

In July this year William Smails was driving home on a Sunday afternoon after visiting his wife in hospital when his accelerator stuck open as he drove down the slip road from the Nene Parkway towards Oundle Road.

His vehicle finally came to a rest where he hit a wall. But the danger was not over yet, as the car started to fill with smoke. Thankfully for William, Ashley Rice, who witnessed the crash, sprinted to pull him out of the car, while Danny Chaffe, part of the management team at the Gordon Arms Pub, ran out with a fire extinguisher to make the scene safe.

Special Recognition Award

There were two recipients of the awards.

- Rev Clive Doubleday: A small Peterborough based charity has been able to make over 5000 free face masks during the last 18 months for poor communities overseas in India, Zimbabwe and Uganda through their Christian family charity Smile International.

They have also provided thousands of food parcels for families in these communities during this challenging time.

Smile International was founded in March 2000 by Clive and Ruth Doubleday. Following Clive’s personal cancer journey in 2009 when he was given just six months to live they set up a palliative care clinic in Kosovo where there is no NHS. If you don’t have money you can’t get proper medical treatment.

They have also been providing free cancer care for many people in Kosovo and over the past 10 years have trained more than 3000 medical staff doctors and nurses in end of life care. They are dedicated to giving hope to those in need and providing people with an opportunity to develop emotionally, physically, socially and spiritually by turning tears into smiles.

- JUNAID HUSSAIN: The second recipient of a Special Recognition Award is a team member at the Amazon Fulfillment Centre in Peterborough who has raised £10,000 to fund the purchase of an ambulance for his hometown in Pakistan.

He wanted to do something to help his community in Pakistan and began fundraising following a visit home in March of this year.

In Junaid’s hometown, the nearest hospital is more than two hours away and without locally available medical equipment essential help was not available when people needed it.

This is a lifeline for his hometown and, already, his efforts have helped more than 60 people receive urgent medical care and transportation to the nearest hospital.