Celebrating our 2026 Alumni Award winners
Our graduates make a difference in communities, professions and organisations around the world.
The University of Worcester Alumni Awards celebrate their achievements and the many ways our alumni are creating positive change.
Meet the winners across our 10 award categories and discover the alumni who were highly commended for their achievements.
Winners
Laura Bounds - Innovation in Career
Laura is an MBE recipient for services to international trade and has been awarded Business Woman of the Year and National Micro Business of the Year. Laura has led and developed multiple businesses, including Kentish Oils and A Little Bit Food Co.
Aidan Goundry - International Impact
Aidan played an integral role in an aid mission in The Gambia, West Africa to help combat the lack of medical provision and the high infant and birth mortality rates by delivering life-saving equipment to the area, leading a team of 60 British, German and Spanish police personnel on a three-week journey through Europe and West Africa. During the handover ceremony, Aidan was presented with a ‘Key to the City’ by the Lord Mayor of Banjul in recognition of his leadership qualities.
Suzette Davenport - Lifetime Achievement
Suzette has had multiple influential roles, including 30 years within the police force, becoming the first female chief constable of Gloucestershire in 2013. Suzette has worked for the Home Office, teaches serving senior police officers at the University of Cambridge and currently sits on the panel that sets the terror alert level. Suzette has received an MBE (2024) for contribution to road safety.
Freddie Barker - Local Community Impact
Freddie founded the local, student-led Speak Volumes arts and culture festival. The festival has grown from a one-day World Poetry Day event in the first year to a three-day festival, now with theatre, comedy and craft included alongside poetry, bringing many different forms of arts to local audiences who otherwise may not be able to access these, often for free, including through taking part in workshops and hosting talks to reach audiences; and providing paid work for over 250 local artists.
Sophie Carrigill - Outstanding Sportsperson
Sophie made her Paralympic debut in Wheelchair Basketball at Rio in 2016, and went on to co-captained Team GB. Sophie also represented GB at the Tokyo 2021 and the Paris 2024 games. Sophie speaks passionately about the importance of growing wheelchair basketball, advocating for increased visibility, funding and opportunities for future athletes.
Jo Yapp - Outstanding Sportsperson
Jo has earnt 70 caps for England, competing in three Rugby World Cups and captaining her country to the 2006 World Cup final. Jo then transitioned into coaching, leading programmes at every level of the game, including England Women Under-20s. Jo became the first female head coach of the Australian national women’s team in 2023, leading them to a major international title and a Rugby World Cup quarter-final. In 2026, Jo made history again with her appointment as the first-ever Head Coach of the British & Irish Lions Women’s team - one of the most prestigious roles in world rugby.
Laura Steward - Rising Star
Laura's roles as Head of Dementia in organisations have contributed to the "Always You" dementia strategy and in expanding the Dementia Ambassador Programme across care groups, helping more staff to become confident advocates for best practice and enhancing the quality of life of people living with dementia. This initiative was recognised nationally, receiving Highly Commended status in the Learning and Development category at the Dementia Care Awards 2024.
Sarah Weston - Rising Star
As a High Needs Manager and SENCo, Sarah develops and implements individualized education plans that cater to the unique needs of students with special educational requirements, collaborating with teachers, parents and external agencies to help students receive the support they need. Sarah is also an Ofsted Registered Aspiring HMI and is pursuing the Headship National Professional Qualification (NPQ).
Shanaz Ahmed - Social Impact Education
Shanaz has over a decade of experience as a school governor and has worked extensively with The Prince’s Trust, developing their Gen Z Programme - a school-based anti-bullying initiative which is now active across secondary schools in Birmingham, with planned expansion to London and Manchester. Shanaz has also founded Bangladesh Community Regeneration Ltd., creating inclusive spaces that bring communities together and celebrate cultural identity.
Brooke Evans - Social Impact Healthcare
Brooke's journey from leukaemia patient to qualified nurse saw her working as a haematology nurse at the very same hospital - and on the same ward - where she had once been treated. Alongside her clinical work, Brooke has undertaken charitable fundraising and awareness-raising, becoming a passionate advocate for Cure Leukaemia and raising thousands of pounds including through a gruelling 300-mile cycling challenge from London to Paris.
Dr Gemma Taylor - Social Impact Healthcare
Gemma is an epidemiologist and behavioural scientist with over 15 years of experience working across NHS, private, and academic sectors and is internationally renowned for her work in tobacco epidemiology. Gemma has received multiple awards and prizes for her research excellence and impact, has published over fifty peer-reviewed articles and secured research funding totalling £1.5 million as Principal Investigator and £35 million as Co-Investigator.
Emma Wright - Sustainability Changemaker
Emma as a leader and changemaker has inspired and influenced action on sustainability, nature and social value across the charity, private and public sectors. Her career has been defined by people-powered change, mobilising leaders, partners and communities to translate ambitious sustainability strategies into practical, measurable outcomes.
At HSBC, she engaged and empowered colleagues across the global organisation to deliver 12 strategic environmental goals covering carbon, energy, waste and resource use, helping the business achieve its environmental commitments two years ahead of schedule.
She played a pivotal role in mobilising more than $17 million of investment for the HSBC Freshwater Programme and engaged stakeholders globally to deliver the HSBC Climate Partnership, sustainability leadership programmes and environmental initiatives across multiple countries.
Working across finance, research, government, corporate and NGO sectors, Emma specialises in turning long-term ambition into achievable action, creating momentum, ownership and lasting environmental and social impact through collaboration, influence and leadership.
Helen Wilson - Worcester Spirit
Helen helped to develop the SCULPT for Accessibility model, influenced by a blind colleague and developed as a means to raise awareness and encourage people to make their documents more accessible. The model was first presented publicly as a model of practice at a cross-government accessibility group in February 2020, attracting attention from many practitioners across government, education and the NHS, and gained traction during the Covid pandemic. As a result, the model was shared under a Creative Commons licence so others could use the model freely.
Highly Commended
Sarah Wood - Innovation in Career
Sarah secured a Professional Fellowship from The National Archives and Research Libraries UK (RLUK) and, drawing on academic research, interviews with archive professionals, collaboration with The National Archives and consultation with wellbeing specialists, developed The Challenging Records Toolkit.
Sam Oakes - International Impact
Sam founded the Atova charity in North Sumatra so that volunteers could support English teaching in local schools, work alongside conservation efforts and take part in structured programmes designed to build understanding of global challenges and practical solutions. The organisation is supporting more than 1,000 students each week across multiple villages, helping improve access to education while also raising awareness of environmental issues.
Ben Calvert - Lifetime Achievement
Ben has had a long career in higher education, securing teaching roles in Birmingham, Plymouth and Gloucestershire, before moving into senior leadership and becoming Vice Chancellor of the University of South Wales.
Roger Vaughan Timbrell - Lifetime Achievement
Roger's career spans 59 years of teaching, including as Deputy Head of Walton High School in Staffordshire where Roger was key to introducing the National Curriculum in the school. In 2000, Roger was invited to take on the role of Consultant Advisor for Inclusion in Staffordshire, working with 52 secondary schools to establish alternative provisions for disaffected students. In 3 years the permanent exclusions in the county fell by 72%. For this work, Roger was awarded the Staffordshire County Council WOW award.
Daniel Filipi - Local Community Impact
Daniel has helped deliver the award-winning BetaDen programme, funded by the local government, supporting over 700 people with understanding emerging technologies through a series of public workshops. Daniel is also one of the co-founders of Worcestershire’s TechFest, a two week festival celebrating innovation and connecting communities; and manages the marketing of a new initiative called 'Women In Tech and Innovation Worcestershire'.
Cleopatra Morris - Local Community Impact
Cleopatra founded the Mission Diverse project in 2020, which supports people from Black and ethnic minority communities, women and people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, to start a business. Cleo has now helped more than 100 people start their own businesses through a free 10-week entrepreneurship programme. Cleopatra has also supported people affected by the Windrush scandal to access advice and opportunities, spoken in schools and colleges to encourage more women and people from underrepresented backgrounds into entrepreneurship, and is now developing a free programme to help older Black women learn to swim after recognising the barriers many have faced in accessing the water.
Phoebe Paterson Pine MBE - Outstanding Sportsperson
Phoebe won gold in the Women’s Individual Compound Open at her debut Paralympic Games in Tokyo. In recognition of Phoebe’s outstanding contribution to sport, she was subsequently awarded an MBE in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to archery. Phoebe has consistently challenged perceptions of disability through sporting achievements, using her platform to demonstrate that barriers can be overcome with determination and belief.
Rebecca Redfern - Outstanding Sportsperson
Rebecca is one of Great Britain’s most accomplished para-swimmers, competing in the visually impaired S13 classification, winning Paralympic medals at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, as well as a gold medal in the SB13 100m breaststroke at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Rebecca’s career also includes multiple World Championship titles and European medals, as well as British, European and world records, and winning Paralympic silver just months after the birth of her son.
Rees Bettell - Rising Star
In less than 19 months post-graduation, Rees has progressed from a Band 5 to a Band 7 Team Lead position. In these roles, Rees has championed the concept of parity of esteem, advocating for the integration of physical and mental healthcare and demonstrating the vital role physiotherapy plays in mental health settings.
Melissa Higley - Rising Star
Within 9 months of working at HCR Law, Melissa had progressed into a corporate Paralegal in the specialist due diligence team. Melissa has also been appointed as Chair of the Worcestershire junior lawyers division, working with multiple law firms across Worcestershire organising networking events for junior professionals and sitting on the Worcestershire Law Society committee.
Elizabeth Michael Chigua - Social Impact Education
Elizabeth founded the Elijerry College of Health and Allied Sciences, a training institution educating local nurses, midwives and health science professionals to meet the critical workforce needs of Muheza District. Elizabeth has established a student elective placement at Elijerry College, with Worcester Nursing students undertaking four week placements there since 2023.
Meg Price - Social Impact Education
Meg has held significant governance and advisory positions within the higher education sector, including serving as a Non-Executive Director for the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and as Commissioner on the UPP Foundation Student Futures Commission. Her current role at Public First informs national debate and supports evidence-based approaches to improving outcomes for learners.
Hannah Harrison and Oliver Nightingale - Social Impact Healthcare
A joint nomination.
Hannah and Oliver worked together to deliver a free physiotherapy service within one of the UK's most deprived communities. Funded by Oasis Community Hub Warndon and Platform Community Chest until at least January 2027, this free-to-use service provides NHS-style outpatient physiotherapy appointments in a trusted community setting. The model is now being replicated across the West Midlands through partnerships with community hubs, foodbanks, churches, care homes and community groups.
Daniel Hastie - Social Impact Healthcare
Daniel has helped with the development of Hospital at Home in Herefordshire and Worcestershire, enabling patients who would traditionally require a hospital admission to receive acute-level care in their own homes. Daniel has also played a leading role in developing the Ambulance Pitstop, an innovative model that has gained national recognition for improving the assessment and management of patients arriving by ambulance.
Edd Moore - Sustainability Changemaker
Edd has played a key role in supporting the wider ambition to bring sustainability into the national curriculum, helping ensure that young people are more aware of environmental issues. His upcoming book, 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Greener Schools, reflects his practical and accessible approach to sustainability. Edd has been named one of the Foundation for Environmental Education’s Teachers of the Year and was also selected as a Coronation Champion, which is an honour given to just 500 individuals for positive contributions to society.
Wang Luyao (Laurel Wang) - Sustainability Changemaker
Laurel's volunteering activities over the last 14 years have aligned with the seventeen areas of the UN Sustainable Development Goals including education equality, DE&I training, environment and health. Luyao recently began a role as a China co-promotion partner of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Class and the Leave No One Behind Public Welfare Foundation.
Kathryn Martin - Worcester Spirit
Kathryn is a multi-award winning illustrator, being recognised in national and international illustration prizes including the World Illustration Awards, the Observer/Jonathan Cape/Comica Graphic Short Story Prize and the Cheltenham Illustration Awards. Kathryn’s work has also been exhibited internationally in Europe and Asia.
Featured profiles
Oliver Nightingale
Oliver Nightingale graduated from the University of Worcester in 2024 with a degree in Physiotherapy and immediately set out to make healthcare more accessible.
Securing funding for his community initiative, Oliver began hosting regular physiotherapy sessions at a local hub in Worcester, bringing treatment directly to where people live.
Within a year of graduating, he was already welcoming placement students from his former course to join his mission, offering hands-on experience while expanding the reach of his organisation, Health Valued.
With big ambitions for growth, Oliver is determined to improve community health for everyone.
Rebecca Redfern
Paralympian swimmer Rebecca Redfern is best known for her incredible tally of gold, silver, and bronze medals across European and World Championships and the Paralympic Games.
Despite having an invitation to Buckingham Palace to celebrate her success, Rebecca instead chose to attend her Graduation from the University of Worcester in 2022, where she received her degree in Primary Education.
Awarded an MBE for her achievements, Rebecca continues to compete at the highest level, focussing on breaststroke events as a reigning Paralympic and World Champion. Beyond the pool, she is passionate about inspiring young people and advocating for greater opportunities for visually impaired individuals in her community.
Brooke Evans
Brooke Evans’ journey into nursing is deeply personal. After graduating from the University of Worcester with a degree in Nursing, one of thousands of healthcare professionals trained by the University, her first role was on the very hospital ward where she had been treated for leukaemia just five years earlier.
Her first job in her new career path saw her working as a haematology nurse, caring for patients with the same condition she once battled herself.
Sophie Carrigill
Sophie Carrigill graduated from the University in 2016, with a degree in Sports Psychology, but she is best known for her incredible career on the wheelchair basketball court.
Her rise at international level began early, with a bronze medal at her major tournament debut at the 2013 European Championships, followed by her appointment as GB Women’s Captain for the 2014 World Championships.
In the same year she completed her studies at Worcester, Sophie co-captained Great Britain’s Women’s team at the Rio 2016 Paralympic games, guiding the squad to its finest-ever finishing position of fourth.
Now, Sophie remains a key figure in the national game and continues to captain the GB Women’s team. Her focus is firmly on the future, as she prepares for the upcoming World Championships in Canada later this year.
Freddie Barker
Freddie Barker studied Film Production and Screenwriting at Worcester, and was the founder of the city’s student-led Speak Volumes Festival.
The festival is a three-day celebration of poetry, theatre, comedy, and craft, and was born under the Victorian railway arches of Worcester, where Freddie and fellow students hosted a one-day pilot event for World Poetry Day.
After graduating, Freddie went on to become the youngest ever Poet Laureate for Worcestershire, a position awarded by the county’s Literary Festival and Fringe CIC, which involves performing at major events like the Ledbury Poetry Festival and Worcester Fringe.
Edd Moore
Edd Moore graduated from the University of Worcester in 2005, the same year it gained full university status, and has spent the past two decades helping schools across England teach children about sustainability.
His dedication earned him national recognition as one of just 500 people named a Coronation Champion by the Queen Consort.
Edd also authored the book 100 ideas for Primary Teachers: Greener Schools, published by Bloomsbury. It’s designed to be a practical, time-saving resource for educators, and helps teachers with ideas for engaging, meaningful and thought-provoking activities to help children apply sustainable practices to their lives and the world around them.
Laura Bounds
Laura Bounds joined the University of Worcester a year after it gained full university status, initially enrolling for a one-year Top-Up degree in Public Service Management.
Inspired by her experience, she stayed on to complete a Master’s in Sociology, and went on to have an extraordinary career.
Today, Laura is an award-winning entrepreneur and Export Champion for the Department of International Trade.
She was awarded an MBE by the late Queen for her achievements and now leads a portfolio of successful food brands, including Kent Crisps, Kentish Oils, and A Little Bit Food Co.
Dr Ben Calvert
Dr Ben Calvert’s journey in higher education began at the University of Worcester, where studying Social Sciences ignited a passion for learning that led him to complete a PhD.
His academic career took him across the UK, teaching media and cultural studies before rising to one of the most senior roles in the sector; the Vice Chancellor of the University of South Wales, one of Wales’s largest institutions.
As he prepares to retire in the summer of 2026m Ben reflects on the transformative power of education, a force that shaped his life and one he plans to keep championing in new ways.
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