Pair honoured by Queen
TEACHER AND SOLDIER MADE MBES IN BIRTHDAY LIST
THE Queen has honoured a teacher and a soldier from Rutland.
Helen Pollard was made an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to physics education.
Corporal David Hemmings received the same honour for his work designing and delivering coronavirus testing training for the military.
Colleagues said Helen is dedicated to the development and delivery of top-quality science education, and to supporting teachers through their careers to help them inspire young people.
She moved to Rutland to be closer to husband Alwyn prior to their marriage and taught physics at Oakham School.
Helen took a break from teaching while the couple’s two children, Sarah and Michael, were young but resumed her career at Casterton Community College and The King’s School, Peterborough, before she returned to Oakham School in 2001.
She said: “I am delighted to receive this award on behalf of my close colleagues and the many teams of volunteers who have given their time and expertise to pass on the baton of enthusiasm for the subject.”
Cpl David Hemmings, 32, based in Cottesmore, was part of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment team that trained fellow Armed Forces personnel how to safely collect swabs before they were sent for processing. He said: “I was in utter shock when I was told I was to receive the MBE.
“When I saw on the news how many people had been tested at the mobile testing sites run by the military, I was really proud because I’d helped achieve that, but I never expected to receive an award.
“I’m not sure I deserve it. Nothing we do in the Army is done by one individual, it’s always a team effort.” Cpl Hemmings’s citation said: “Every one of the 1,104 military personnel in the 92 units had been trained by his team. Without his leadership and relentless effort, well above that expected of his rank, the Army would not have trained sufficient units to meet the promise to the Department of Health and Social Care.”