Newcastle alumni recognised in King’s New Year Honours

Dr Alice Hartley MBE

Dr Alice Hartley (PhD Molecular Biology, 2020) is a Consultant Urologist at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, based at Sunderland Royal Hospital and specialising in renal and prostate cancer care. Alice started her medical career with the RAF before leaving the force to fulfil her ambitions to become a surgeon.

In the King’s New Year Honours, Alice has been awarded an MBE in recognition of her pioneering work to deal with bullying and undermining in surgery, which, in turn, helps make patients safer. According to a recent NHS Staff Survey, at least one in five people in surgery witness bullying.

Her MBE comes in the wake of the prestigious Hunter Doig Medal from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) in recognition of her contribution to excellence in surgery, specifically career potential and ambition. She was also recently successful in becoming a Clinical Champion for Prostate Cancer UK.

Professor Sir Amritpal Singh Hungin

Amritpal Singh Hungin, Emeritus Professor at Newcastle University, has been named a Knight Bachelor in the 2024 New Year Honours List by King Charles III.

Professor Hungin, known as Pali, is an eminent doctor and medical researcher with more than 30 years’ experience. He was founding Professor of Primary Care and General Practice at Durham University in 1997 and their founding Dean of Medicine in 2003. He later joined Newcastle University, where he remains a Professor Emeritus.

Born in Kenya, Professor Hungin was a founding member of the UK and European Societies for Primary Care Gastroenterology and is internationally recognised for his research and leadership in patient care.

He has served as President of the British Medical Association and is currently a non-executive director of the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust.

Andrew Roe KFSM

London Fire Brigade Commissioner Andrew Roe (BA Hons English Literature, 1995) has been awarded the King's Fire Service Medal in the King's New Year's Honours list 2024 in recognition of his 22 years of service in the Brigade and for his leadership of the Brigade through one of the most challenging periods in its history. 

As the Commissioner of one of the largest and busiest fire services worldwide, he has been responsible for leading wholescale transformation of the Brigade since 2020. This has included the introduction of new equipment, procedures and training following the tragedies of the Grenfell Tower Fire and multiple terror attacks in London. Alongside these, there has been significant investment in leadership and an improved approach to community engagement, putting those who need the Brigade most at its centre.

Anthony Bravo OBE

A Newcastle graduate twice over, Anthony Bravo (BSc Hons Agriculture and Environmental Science, 1985; PGCE, 1989) has been awarded an OBE for services to Further Education in this year’s Honours List.

Tony is the Principal of Basingstoke College of Technology, which offers vocational qualifications through full-time and part-time courses, as well as apprenticeships. Since assuming this role in 2009, he has led the college with a particular focus on partnership, community, income generation and most recently workforce development.

Alongside his Principalship, Tony is also Chair of Trustees at West Berkshire Training Consortium and a governor for Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, representing West Berkshire and North Hampshire.

Catriona Schmolke CBE

Catriona Schmolke (MPhil Civil Engineering, 2003) is the CEO and Founder of CharlieFive Ltd and Visiting Professor of Sustainability, Risk and Resilience at Newcastle University. She has recently been awarded a CBE for Services to Engineering.

Formerly the Global Vice President of Jacobs, Catriona has over 35 years’ experience in energy, waste, water and sustainability consulting solutions and is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

With CharlieFive Ltd, she provides independent sustainability advice and executive mentoring and coaching to clients across various sectors and industries. Catriona also serves as a Non-Executive Director at National Physical Laboratory (NPL), Scottish Water, and several other organisations, contributing to their governance, risk management, innovation, and performance.

Jack Deverson MBE

Modern Languages graduate Jack Deverson (BA Hons German and Chinese, 2015) has been awarded an MBE for Services to Education, in recognition of the work of his Sunderland-based organisation, Evidence Based Education.

Founded in 2015, Evidence Based Education (EBE) is a teacher development, school improvement and research organisation, and the home of the Great Teaching Toolkit, a personalised professional development platform.

The organisation currently has 17 employees and more than 14,000 teachers accessing its services. In December 2023, EBE was awarded a contract to deliver training to 23,000 teachers in the UAE over the next two years. The contract will see the organisation translate courses from its popular Great Teaching Toolkit into Arabic.

James Fenny MBE

Newcastle Law School alumnus James Fenny (LLB, 1990) has been awarded an MBE for Services to Law and Organ Donor Awareness in this year’s New Year Honour List.

Works at Public Defender Service providing high quality independent legal advice in police stations, magistrates’ and Crown Courts for those facing investigation and prosecution in criminal cases.

James qualified as a Solicitor in 1995 and has worked in Criminal Defence ever since dealing with all cases from theft to fraud, violence and murder.

Alongside his legal career, James is a Transplant Surgery Ambassador for the NHS, being a heart and kidney transplant recipient himself.

Melanie John-Ross MBE

Recent Newcastle University Business School graduate Melanie John-Ross (MSc Coaching and Mentoring, 2023) has been awarded an MBE for Services to Children and Families in Barnsley in recognition of her lifelong career as a social worker and in the safeguarding sector.

Mel retired from the role of Service Director, Children’s Social Care and Safeguarding, at Barnsley Council in 2023. In her semi-retired capacity, Mel joined Newcastle University to train as a coach and mentor and continues to support children’s safeguarding partnerships and children’s services in her local area.

Richard Bottomley MBE

Head Teacher Richard Bottomley (BA Hons Economics, 1996) has been awarded an MBE for Services to Vulnerable Children and Young People by King Charles III.

Richard has been Head Teacher at Bradford Alternative Provision Academy (BAPA) since 2017. BAPA takes referrals for secondary aged young people who live in Bradford and have been permanently excluded from school, providing these young people with a new opportunity to engage with the education environment. 

Under Richard’s leadership, BAPA is committed to providing a safe, caring and stimulating environment for all pupils. This allows our young people to re-engage with learning and either return to mainstream schooling or successfully move to a more specialist setting.

Shirley Rogers CBE

Shirley Rogers (BA Hons Social Studies, 1986; MA Human Resource Management, 1996) was awarded a CBE in the New Year Honours List for Services to Scottish Community Healthcare and to Major Events.

In her role with NHS Scotland, Shirley was part of the team responsible for introducing first responders into Scotland.

In the latter years of her career, she worked with the Scottish Government to help communities become more resilient and ensure that health and wellbeing responses were good. This included offering support with planning around Brexit, the coronavirus pandemic and Queen Elizabeth II’s death.

She also worked with emergency services for the UCI Cycling World Championships to make sure events could take place as safely and successfully as possible.

Having retired in 2023, Shirley is now Chair of the Board at Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA).