Head of Volunteer services at Northampton General recognised in Queen's Birthday Honours

Emma Wimpress, Head of Volunteer Services at Northampton General Hospital, has been awarded with the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2020, for her services to volunteering services during Covid-19.

Emma has been managing the volunteer services at the hospital since 2016 and has helped to shape and grow the service into the team it is today. Now leading over 400 volunteers, Emma and the team have provided support to thousands of patients coming to the hospital.

Her work during the Covid-19 pandemic and Emma’s quick, imaginative solutions supported in making a real difference to staff, patients and their loved ones during the pandemic. To support in easing some of the pressure in the hospital faced, over 120 new response volunteers were recruited to support with duties such as urgent medication delivery and providing meaningful contact with patients.

The volunteer response to Covid-19 also included supporting with the delivery of letters by volunteers to patients from their relatives and a relative video calling service. These services have provided a connection between those in hospital and families have praised the care and compassion of the volunteers. This link to the outside world saw visible improvement in patients who has received calls or letters from their families or who had spent time with the volunteers.

Emma Wimpress (BEM) said, "It's an absolute honour to receive the British Empire Medal award and I feel incredibly privileged to have been recognised.

"It's amazing that we have been recognised for making a difference through the volunteer service. Without the dedication of my team and our volunteers, I would never have achieved what I have.

"It's fantastic that we have been recognised as having a positive impact on patients and support them during their stay in hospital and after. The COVID pandemic has seen us introduce even more support for patients through video calls, letters to loved ones and our volunteers have been an outstanding support.

"I also want to thank my husband Andy and my two children Evelyn and Finley for being so amazingly supportive"

The British Empire Medal is awarded for ‘hands-on’ service to the local community. This includes voluntary or charitable activity or innovative work that has made a significant difference.