As the third-largest clinical workforce within health and care, allied health professions (AHPs) play a pivotal role in supporting the NHS Long Term Plan, and the theme for AHPs' Day 2025 is the 3 shifts: hospital to community; treatment to prevention; and analogue to digital. AHPs day, celebrated on 14 October 2025, is an annual occasion for AHPs in England and now internationally offering a platform to spotlight the remarkable impact AHPs have on the delivery of care.
Nottinghamshire Healthcare's annual AHP Appreciation Awards celebrate local service achievements and their profound influence on patient care with category winners announced to coincide with AHPs Day.
2025 Award Categories
We're excited to announce that the shortlisted nominations are now confirmed, and the winners will be revealed on AHPs Day, celebrated on 14 October 2025.
Shortlisted nominations
AHP Digital Practice
This category celebrates the achievements of AHPs, AHP Support Workers or AHP Teams who have led the way in digital developments demonstrating innovation.
Susan Hume, Specialist Podiatrist
Suzie has championed the podiatry department into going all digital, working effectively with the Trust's digital and SystmOne teams to drive innovation, enabling effective implementation of new SystmOne templates, digital questionnaires, and electronic observations.
Karen Horner and Joanna Litton, Occupational Therapists, Post COVID team
Karen and Jo have embraced digital care delivery to enable patients who wish to access their treatment whilst in the comfort of their own home, to receive input on a group and individual basis. Karen and Jo have received outstanding patient feedback for their online sessions, describing how they managed to create cohesive online groups where people were seen and heard.
Fiona Buckley, Occupational Therapist and Digi-care Champion
Fiona has embraced her new role as a Digi-care champion, proactively championing an AHP perspective and the needs of AHPs in the transformation of digital services. Fiona recognises the impact of change and supports people with this, and used her frontline AHP experience to help make digital improvements that will maximise the quality of patient care.
AHP Leadership
The AHP Leadership award is for an AHP or AHP support workers who has demonstrated exemplary leadership that demonstrates a positive and sustained impact on patients, service users, carers and staff.
Jonathan Gaydon - Sports Fitness and Wellbeing Co-Ordinator, Arnold Lodge
Jonathan's leadership has brought the hospital together, not just in physical activity, but as a social element too. He gives up his own time to create fitness programmes for staff who require these and will do weekly check ins to make sure that these goals are being met, and offers evening sessions to patients when they find it most difficult. Jonathan has been at the front of a recent carers day which was a massive success.
Glenn Painter - Occupational Therapist, Rampton Hospital
Glenn's enthusiasm, resilience, and creative thinking have been consistently recognised by colleagues and stakeholders. His work has had a sustained impact on service delivery, staff engagement, and most importantly on the lives of the women in high-secure care through co-developing a trauma-informed, accessible, and patient-centred therapy pathway with the patients voice central.
Jordan Nelson - Physiotherapist, Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy
Several nominations described how Jordan's outstanding patient-centred leadership has had a transformational impact on the service and patient care, fostering innovative team culture rooted in continuous learning and quality improvement whilst leading the team with kindness and compassion. Through research, audits and feedback this has led to improved waiting times, and multiple service development projects.
AHP Quality Improvement, Research and Innovation
This award focuses on the contribution made by AHPs in developing, leading, or supporting quality improvement, research or innovation in health, social care and public health, and the impact that this contribution has made.
Ann-Marie Holliday, Physiotherapist, Community Therapy
As part of master's degree research, Ann-Marie provided e-learning on the benefits of exercise and the promotion of exercise to prevent future issues such as falls. This evaluated highly and was incredibly relevant to community therapy staff. Generous with her new-found knowledge, Ann-Marie's enthusiasm to learn and develop herself is benefitting the whole team through additional training for all levels of staff based on her research and learning.
Rebecca Sandy and Claire Wylie, Occupational Therapists, Older Peoples Care Unit
Becky and Claire are at the forefront of innovation working hard to demonstrate the value of occupational therapy in fire prevention in their secondment at Notts Fire and Rescue Service. They are passionate about what their work and are producing bespoke resources and measuring outcomes to help shape their service to meet the needs of their patients in this high-risk area.
Daniel Huggett, Occupational Therapist, Rampton Hospital
Dan has led transition sessions, supporting patients on a 1:1 and group basis to move to medium secure units to continue their treatment pathway, collaborated to research and develop a Lego Therapy course tailored to high secure personality disorder patients, and continued to innovate new ward-based sessions to generate inclusivity and engagement of his patients. In doing so, he has provided many of his patients with meaningful activity and structure to their weekly schedule, something which had previously been lacking for many.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
This award recognises AHPs or AHP Support workers who demonstrate an outstanding commitment to valuing and promoting equality, diversity and inclusion for service users and/or staff.
Rebecca Sandy and Claire Wylie, Occupational Therapists, Older Persons Care Unit
Becky and Claire, through their work within Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, support those in our community who are most vulnerable. Given it is often those with an in low social economical background who have disengaged or not had access to other health services due to being house bound, serious mental health illness and who have severe multiple disadvantage that are more at risk of accidental fires. By connecting with people who often fall through gaps of service and upskilling colleagues throughout the Trust, they promote a diverse, inclusive approach for all to live their lives independently while promoting positive health and wellbeing.
Luke Morris - Occupational Therapy Assistant, Wathwood Hospital
Luke's passion for embedding equality, diversity and inclusion into practice is to be commended and as an equality, diversity and inclusion staff ambassador for Wathwood hospital Luke was an active member in updating the raising concerns about discrimination flow chart and presenting this to the senior management team. As sole facilitator for Wathwood's mandatory equality, diversity and inclusion training, Luke's delivery is engaging for staff and improves the quality of care provided to our patients.
Chris Senior - Occupational Therapy Assistant, Thorneywood Mount
Chris only started in role last September but using his EDI Ambassador prior experience has brought equality, diversity and inclusion to the forefront of all the meetings that are held on the ward. Informed of any policy updates and changes and amazing at advocating for the patients in his care, Chris directs to the right support services and to ensure culturally appropriate activities which will make a big impact to the patients in our care.
AHP Support Worker of the Year
This award recognises an AHP support worker whose contribution has made an outstanding and lasting difference to patients or staff.
Ann Cotton - Podiatric Surgery Support Worker
From the outset of Ann joining our team her professionalism, initiative, and clinical experience made a significant impact and Ann exemplifies the values of leadership, teamwork, and excellence. Support her colleagues with unwavering commitment Ann is also a driving force for improvement, identifying opportunities to enhance patient care and efficiency in managing theatre supplies for seamless service delivery and through her role as Infection Prevention and Control Champion.
Christina Harvey - Speech and Language Therapy Assistant, CAMHS
Chrissy strives to improve outcomes for young people and has produced evidence-based resources and workbooks which have been presented at the National FCAMHS forum, which professional networks can use during direct interventions with young people to build on their knowledge and understanding in a way that is accessible.
Kate Hallott - Speech and Language Therapy Assistant, IDD Services
Kate's positive attitude, reliability, and calm approach makes them a valued colleague. As well as providing consistent, accessible communication support tailored to individual needs for people learning disabilities, autism, or communication difficulties, Kate's guidance on how to use communication tools effectively has boosted staff confidence, reduced reliance on specialist input for routine communication, and fostered a more inclusive, person-centred culture.
Student, Apprentice or Preceptee of the Year
This Award recognises the achievements of an individual AHP Student, Apprentice of Preceptee who alongside their personal learning and development has brought about clear benefits and impact on our patients, service users and carers through their commitment, vision, determination and drive.
Adrianna Mathers - Occupational Therapy Degree Apprentice, Gedling Local Mental Health Team
Adrianna has exhibited a great understanding of the vital role AHPs play within the local mental health team and Adrianna's dedication to mastering clinical skills, patient interaction, and collaborative working has been exemplary. Adrianna's person-centred approach to clinical care has meant that she has been able to deliver effective intervention that has supported multiple clients to make huge steps in their recovery and provided them with confidence and skills to be able to manage their mental health independently.
Courtney Whitchurch - Occupational therapy Degree Apprentice, Lings Bar Hospital
Courtney is in her final year of her Occupational Therapy Apprentice Degree and is a Rehabilitation Support Worker at Lings Bar Hospital. Her dedication and drive to not only her degree but the improvement of patient independence is outstanding. Courtney is a hard-working colleague, and her efforts do not go unnoticed within the therapy team especially whilst completing her apprentice degree.
Amy Swan and Anna Winter - Speech and Language Therapists, Older Persons Care Unit
Since joining the Older persons care unit Inpatient Therapy Team in a new role, Amy and Anna have worked non-stop to improve patient care. This includes establishing the communication service on our dementia wards and completing an audit of communication standards on dementia wards with findings and recommendations supporting environmental changes on Silver Birch, such as improved signage, which it is hoped will contribute to a reduction in falls and distressed behaviour. They have also worked with Facilities and Dietetic colleagues to create a more accessible menu to facilitate patient choice and therefore improve nutrition and hydration.
Unsung Hero
This award recognises the achievements of an individual AHP or AHP support worker who goes beyond their job description to help the Trust deliver its objectives. They bring about change and clear benefits for our patients, service users and carers through their creative thinking, commitment, vision, determination and drive.
Susan Hume, Specialist Podiatrist
Suzy is the definition of an unsung hero-quietly driving meaningful change while supporting colleagues and patients alike, demonstrating unwavering dedication, versatility, and quiet leadership. Suzy never seeks recognition, yet her impact is felt across every part of the team.
Christina Harvey, Speech and Language Therapy Assistant, CAMHS
Chrissy strives to improve outcomes for young people and has produced evidence-based resources and workbooks which have been presented at the National FCAMHS forum, which professional networks can use during direct interventions with young people to build on their knowledge and understanding in a way that is accessible.
Helen Gannaway, Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, IDD Services
Helen's is a much-valued colleague who works tirelessly to support her service users, looking for areas of innovation that could further benefit both them and the staff who support them. A natural teacher, Helen has set up a support group for newly qualified staff and was instrumental in setting up a monthly communication clinic supporting colleagues to make reasonable adjustments.
AHP Team of the Year
This award celebrates an AHP team that has demonstrated their ability to deliver clear benefits through working together effectively and efficiently.
Podiatric Surgery
The team received multiple nominations which included feedback from patients on their positive experiences, which are exceptionally reassuring, friendly, caring and involving people in all aspects of treatment and care. Nominations describe how the surgery they perform often makes a huge improvement to quality of life and coupled with being treated with kindness, care and respect patients came away from each visit with the impression that the team is an example of how excellent healthcare can be and a fabulous credit to the Trust.
NNE Community Therapy Team
This team of Occupational therapists, Physiotherapists, Assistant practitioners, and Rehab Support Workers have broad qualifications and experience and deserve recognition for their hard work, determination, skills, empathy and working in the truest person-centred approach and often going above and beyond to make a difference. The biggest compliment for this team is that if any of their nominators friends or family needed support from the team they would be honoured to know they were being cared for by this wonderful collection of people.
Peaks CRB AHP Team, Rampton Hospital
This team of Occupational Therapists and Assistants, Speech and Language Therapists and assistants were nominated for excellence in team working and outstanding patient-focused care through their collaboration on new methods of working with patients, such as researching and developing a customised Lego Therapy course for patients, and for successfully supporting transitions which enabled patients moving to medium secure units to continue their recovery journeys.