I’ve been awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours 2026 for services to healthcare and the LGBTQ+ community.
I’m still processing it, honestly. But what strikes me most is this: the work being recognised – leading the Infection Prevention Society, founding It Gets Better UK, supporting healthcare professionals and LGBTQ+ young people through crisis – it’s all been about the same thing.
Showing up for people at their most vulnerable.
That’s what leadership is, really. Not the polished LinkedIn version. Not the strategic plans or the board presentations. It’s about being present when things are hard. Creating conditions for others to flourish. Building systems that protect people rather than exploit them.
Why This Matters to The Leadership Nook
The Leadership Nook exists because I learned the hard way what happens when you don’t show up for yourself.
I became Head of Department at 27. Assistant Director by 29. CEO of two national organisations before 35. From the outside, it looked like I had it together.
Inside, I was running on empty. Saying yes to everything. Believing that if I wasn’t holding it all together, everything would collapse.
Then I burned out so badly I was signed off work for six months. Complete system failure.
Rebuilding taught me something crucial: you cannot lead sustainably if you’re destroying yourself in the process. And the leaders who create real, lasting change are the ones who learn to protect what matters while pursuing what matters.
That’s what I help leaders do now. Not through theory, but through lived experience of what works when you’re actually carrying that weight.
Leadership as Service
This OBE isn’t about individual achievement. It belongs to every colleague, trustee, volunteer, and community member who’s been part of this journey. The healthcare workers protecting patients every day. The young LGBTQ+ people who’ve shared their stories. The teams who show up and do the real work.
Leadership isn’t about being indispensable. It’s about creating conditions where others can lead too.
If you’re a leader who’s brilliant at your job but exhausted by it – who cares deeply but feels like it’s costing you everything – that’s exactly why The Leadership Nook exists.
Because you deserve to lead with impact AND have a life. Not someday. Now.
Thank you to everyone who’s been part of this journey. Here’s to continuing to serve, support, and create space for others to flourish.
