AN ambassador for an independent health charity has been named Inspirational Role Model of the Year.

Healthwatch Essex, a charity which represents users of health and social care in Essex, is celebrating multiple awards for its board members and volunteers.

One volunteer, Siobhan Riordan, was named Inspirational Role Model of the Year at the Braintree District Volunteer Awards and John Wills was also awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Directory of Social Change.

Tom Nutt, chief executive of Healthwatch Essex, said: “John is one of our mental health ambassadors and Siobhan is a carer ambassador.

“Both richly deserve the recognition they have received and we are very lucky to have them working with us.

“Likewise, our trusty trustees put in an enormous amount of work that makes a huge difference to the success of Healthwatch Essex.

"Volunteering has always been a big part of what makes us able to capture the lived experience of the people of Essex and we work with many other organisations that similarly rely on the commitment of their volunteers.”

Chair of the Board of Trustees, Les Lodge, scooped Volunteer of the Year at the Marvels of Mid Awards handed out by Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group and fellow trustee and vice chairman of the charity’s board, Samantha Glover, was also a finalist at The Dental Awards last week.

Samantha Glover was nominated for Oral Health Educator of the Year at the Dental Awards presented on May 12 in Birmingham.

She was praised for her dedication to self-training in her MSC studies and for her professionalism, consistent empathy with patients and the demands of clinical care.