The Pharmacist Support charity recognised some of their key supporters for their fundraising efforts carried out during their 175th anniversary year in their Hero Awards, presented in London’s prestigious Apothecaries Hall.

The charity’s chair Professor Peter Noyce and chief executive Diane Leicester-Hallam presented 10 awards to people who had donated their time and had gone above and beyond to help raise awareness and vital funds to support those within the profession confronted by difficult circumstances.

Social Media Hero – Babir Malik. Babir utilises his strong social media following to ensure that the profession know where to go for support in times of need and is a strong champion for the charity.

Charity Champion – Michael Champion. Michael is often seen out and about across the country in his green wig and T-shirt, championing the work of Pharmacist Support as an ambassador. He has run two half marathons as part of his many fundraising activities.

Business Hero – Boots UK. Boots truly got behind the charity’s wellbeing work, says Pharmacist Support, with workshops, a wellbeing video for pharmacy staff and encouraging fundraising across the company.

Go Green Hero - The Royal Pharmaceutical Society. In September the charity launch its first ever annual fundraising initiative asking people across the profession to Go Green for Pharmacist Support. The greenest of the Green GoGreeners was The Royal Pharmaceutical Society, as the result of activities including a raffle and a green bake sale.

Fundraising Group – The British Pharmaceutical Students’ Association. The BPSA as a group really embraced the 175 Hero theme, raising a fantastic £2,500, with activities including a charity auction and joining the charity’s Manchester Santa 5K run.

Pharmacy School Hero – Robert Gordon University. Of the fantastic response from pharmacy schools across Great Britain, one university in particular - Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen - raised the most funds from their 175 and GoGreen St Patricks Day pub crawl activities.

Outstanding Achievement Award – Johnathan Laird. Jonathan set himself an ambitious Hero challenge – as a non-runner he pledged to run 5k every day in January and increased this to 10K a day for the final few days of the month.

Unsung Hero - Alan Hughes. Alan has organised numerous events over the years to raise money for the charity, including a number of wine tasting evenings for colleagues.

Fundraising Hero - Mohammed Hussain. Mohammed helped the charity launch its 175 Hero recruitment campaign and secure the highly successful SuperHero Selfie Station at the 2015 Pharmacy Show and ran the Bradford Half Marathon

Special Recognition Award - Kirit Patel MBE. The charity was saddened by the news of Kirit’s premature passing last year, and wanted to acknowledge the significant role he played in supporting their work. Kirit made many valuable contributions to the charity during his life and career.

Each year, we see the demand for the charity’s services continue to rise, said Ms Leicester-Hallam. “In 2016 we saw a staggering 35% increase in calls, emails and LiveChats to our Information & enquiry service – the charity’s most popular service. As this demand grows, so does the importance of sustainable income streams to ensure that we can continue our work.”

www.pharmacistsupport.org