King's New Year Honours: Peterborough stalwarts recognised

Moez Nathu used his own experience to target support for refugees and asylum seekers in Peterborough

Two community stalwarts in Peterborough are among those recognised in the King's New Year Honours List.

Moez Nathu has been awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to refugees and asylum seekers.

Dedicated volunteer John Sharman is awarded a BEM for services to the community in Peterborough.

This year, 105 people in the East of England have received honours for their exceptional contribution to local communities.

Mr Nathu co-founded the Peterborough Asylum and Refugee Community Association (Parca) in 2002 and runs a community centre where disadvantaged and migrant communities can access support.

The father of three said his experiences "derived from the real-life challenges" he found on his own arrival in the UK from the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997.

"Through determination and self-motivation, I dedicated myself to learning English while at the same time helping people overcome the day-to-day difficulties they encountered," he said.

Mr Nathu said the BEM was "God's gift" for his 22-year career helping refugees in Peterborough

Mr Nathu said the most important service Parca provided was "hospitality, to break down isolation and loneliness" felt by people settling in Peterborough.

"The local authority says Parca is a champion of integration in Peterborough and that is true - it helps people gain life skills," he said.

The centre now supports people from 63 different global nationalities.

Mr Nathu said he felt "proud and honoured" that his 22 years of hard work had been recognised.

"I take it as God's gift to do this job," he said.

"I am proud of myself and especially of this team, and very humbled."

Botolph Green in Peterborough is now a thriving green space in the city, thanks to the organising efforts of Mr Sharman

In 2005, Mr Sharman, now a 87-year-old great-grandfather, re-established a leaflet campaign to regenerate Botolph Green, a green space in the city that he said had been "gently deteriorating".

"It was once part of an old farm and needed some sort of protection," he said.

"It didn't have any funding or staff to do anything so we gathered a large number of volunteers to do an awful lot of work in a short period of time."

Botolph Green is now a thriving community space, with play areas, wildflower planting, a newly-restored pond and a bandstand. Since 2007, it has played host to the annual Botolph Green Day Festival.

The event continues today and remains the key funding source for the upkeep of the green.

Mr Sharman said he was "amazed, delighted and surprised" to learn he would receive the award.

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