Rising Star alumni recognised in Queen’s most diverse honours list ever

Rising Star Alumni recognised in Queen's Birthday Honours List

WeAreTheCity’s Rising Star alumni have been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List – the most diverse honours list ever.

Sally Penni, Barrister at Law, who won a Rising Star Award in 2017, was awarded an MBE for women in the Law and Social Mobility; Natalie Campbell, who also won a Rising Star Award in 2017, was awarded an MBE for social entrepreneurship and business; and Bex Fyan’s, who won a Rising Star Award in 2018, was awarded an MBE for Disability and Diversity and Inclusion.

This year’s Honours List was dominated by frontline workers and community champions for their continuing work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare and social care workers make up 14 per cent of the List, for contributions as diverse as setting up the COVID-19 hospitals to delivering medical care on the frontline.

The majority of the Queen’s Birthday Honours List was compiled before the ongoing pandemic. The List was deferred in order to consider nominations for people playing crucial roles during the first months of the COVID-19 effort and has prioritised frontline and community heroes who went above and beyond their duties to help others. These recipients are, like Sir Captain Tom Moore, outstanding examples of the many contributions continuously being made right across the UK, and symbolic of the collective national effort.

As well as those awarded for their response to COVID-19, recipients are being recognised for a wide range of other contributions to society. Trans activist, Jacqui Gavin was awarded a BEM for services to Gender Equality; Paulette Simpson, CEO, The Voice and Jamaica National Bank, was awarded a CBE for services to the Caribbean community in the UK ; and Shirley Cooper, Chair, Non-Executive Director and Board Advisor was awarded an OBE for services to Equality, Women’s Empowerment and Procurement.

The honours system strives to be proportionally representative of UK society. This Honours List demonstrates the breadth of service given by people from all backgrounds from all across the UK.

This year’s list is the most diverse ever, with 13 per cent of the successful candidates coming from a BAME background. Six per cent of the successful candidates consider themselves to have a disability. Of the 1,495 people who received an award,72 per cent of the recipients are people who have undertaken outstanding work in their communities, either in a voluntary or paid capacity.


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About the author

Alison is the Digital Content Editor for WeAreTheCity. She has a BA Honours degree in Journalism and History from the University of Portsmouth. She has previously worked in the marketing sector and in a copywriting role. Alison’s other passions and hobbies include writing, blogging and travelling.
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