New Year Honours 2023: Volunteer was convinced honour email was scam

James (right) pictured with brother Edward having raised money for Alzheimer's Research UK, by taking part in the 2018 RideLondon event

A community volunteer who organised support groups in his area during the pandemic said he was convinced his New Year Honour notice "was a scam".

James Hems, 35, from Trumpington in Cambridge, said he was so surprised when he received the email that he thought his account had been hacked.

He has been appointed a British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to the community.

"It's not something you expect via email," he said.

"I genuinely thought it was a scam - I had to double check it all".

Socially distanced dog walks and training in Trumpington attracted up to 40 people at its peak during the pandemic

Most of the groups he was involved in had existed in some form prior to 2020 but he was able to get involved and connect them all.

The initiatives ranged from socially distanced dog walks and training, a new parent support group and organising daily food trucks to visit his community, which in turn donated to local food banks.

'Lifeline'

Mr Hems, who became a parent in 2020, said: "We organised walks in Trumpington for new parents as a way to get out the house and meet other parents in the local area.

"People could exchange stories and talk about lack of sleep and how they didn't know what they were doing.

"It was particularly difficult during periods of lockdown, and isolating because family and friends couldn't visit. So it was giving people a lifeline of support."

Mr Hems said community is important to him and he felt that to be part of it he wanted to help create an environment he and others could enjoy living in.

He said: "Now we are a population that moves around a lot more, people rent and they're coming and going. People don't get to know each other.

"One positive of 2020 was people started to have these deeper connections in the community."

Mr Hems said he wanted to use the honour to also recognise members of his community who helped him.

"I've been fortunate to meet several equally, if not more, worthy individuals whose never-ending efforts and contributions have helped inspire and motivate me to play a part in the community, personal and professional."

The legacy of the various groups in a post lockdown world is also something he is proud of.

He said: "None of the groups have stopped since the end of 2021, everything has carried on in 2022 and all continue for the foreseeable future."

Other people in Cambridgeshire to be recognised in the New Year Honours are:

• Prof Sir Partha Sarathi Dasgupta, of the University of Cambridge, has been appointed the highest order of the Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire for services to economics and the natural environment

• Louenna Hood, a nanny from Cambridgeshire, has been awarded a BEM for services to refugees

• June Sanders, from Ely, is appointed an MBE for services to charity and mental health