New Year Honours 2024: Wolverhampton's Louis Johnson awarded BEM

Louis Johnson began fundraising for charity when he was 11

A teenager who has raised up to £75,000 for charities said it felt unbelievable to be awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) in the New Year Honours list.

Louis Johnson began fundraising for good causes in his home city of Wolverhampton when he was 11.

He has supported 18 charities and personally raised £20,000 for Birmingham Children's Hospital.

Now 17, he has received his BEM for services to his community.

"I couldn't believe it, I really couldn't," he said of being awarded the medal.

"It set in once I saw the letters and the emails and stuff and it's just unbelievable," Louis said.

Memory walks

The teenager explained he started doing Barnardo's walks that his mum set up when he was "very, very little" and the fundraising had "exploded" over the years.

"From me wanting to do the annual memory walks for a hospice that my nan was in, to going to 18 different charities and raising about £75,000 in total," he said.

Louis has received numerous awards for his fundraising efforts, including being named Midlands Air Ambulance young fundraiser of the year in 2017.

He thought his friends would be proud of him getting the BEM.

"They know what I do and they are supportive of it," he added.

In 2024, he plans to continue "raising more money [to make] a bigger difference."