Charity fundraisers recognised in Queen's Birthday jubilee honours

Charity fundraisers, sports coaches and community workers are among those included in the Queen's Birthday Honours list.

The Platinum Jubilee list recognises public service of individuals across the UK.

They include the founder of Windsor Baby Bank and an Oxfordshire couple who raised £200,000 for charity by trying all 102 Olympic disciplines.

Many were rewarded for community work carried out during the pandemic.

Charlotte Nichols and Stuart Bates from Abington in Oxfordshire raised more than £200,000 for the Motor Neurone Disease Association by trying all 102 Olympic events - including the marathon, 10km swim and 240km road cycle ride - during the 17 days of the 2021 Tokyo games.

Mr Bates's brother Spencer, known as Spenny, died of the condition in 2011, aged 49.

Ms Nichols, a medical student at the University of Bristol, said they were "absolutely blown away" when they found out they were to become MBEs.

"We did something the nation took to their hearts, but we never thought we would get recognition like this. It's really special for us, but more so for the memory of my brother.

"We are so glad we did it - we had so much fun in the process, we loved every second of it," added Mr Bates.

Gymnastics coach Pat Mathie was awarded the British Empire Medal in recognition of her work running Avonbourne Gymnastics Club in Bournemouth for almost 20 years.

The club currently has 270 youngsters on the books and Ms Mathie also runs gymnastics sessions for preschool children aged as young as 18 months.

The 64-year-old said she was "honoured and humbled" to receive the honour.

"They get to build self-confidence from 18 months by developing physical skills like balance and special awareness. It gives them discipline, friendship and they have lots of fun," she said.

"I like to think if we get families into the habit of exercise at an early stage, that works for all kinds of different activities."

The Windsor Baby Bank was founded in 2015 by Rebecca Mistry, along with Amy Tisi, to provide clothing, equipment and furniture to parents in need.

It has since helped more than 5,000 families in Berkshire and Buckinghamshire and has accepted more than 45,000 donated items.

Ms Mistry, who has been awarded the British Empire Medal, said: "It's not just my award - it's for the entire team at the baby bank.

"It's an acknowledgement of the challenges we faced as a charity during the pandemic - not being able to get funding, not getting donations.

"We had to get items to families that desperately needed them who perhaps would not have traditionally accessed our services. Families lost their income overnight, not everyone has a pot of savings to fall back on."

Other recipients of honours include former Culture Secretary and Basingstoke MP Maria Miller who receives a damehood, while Neil Odin, chief fire officer of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service, receives the Queen's Fire Service Medal.

Jamie Brenchley, housing manager at Isle of Wight Council, becomes an MBE for his work with the homeless, particularly during Covid-19, while Sally Garland receives the British Empire Medal for her work in setting up the Chandler's Ford Help! support group during the pandemic.

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