A WOMAN who grew up in Weston has been awarded an MBE for services to major event responses.
Kate Skidmore, a civil servant at the Department for Transport, works on Government crisis responses.
Speaking to the Weston Mercury, Kate said: "My team is responsible for ensuring the UK aviation sector are appropriately prepared to mitigate and respond effectively to major incidents.
"This could be severe weather, IT outages, international conflicts and sanctions, or national events such as The Coronation.
“It is a big team effort working with the aviation sector and across Government to minimise disruption and maintain safety for the travelling public, whilst also contributing to the successful delivery of national events – it can be a bit of a juggling act.
"A stand-out moment that I am proud to have worked on was the Government’s humanitarian response to the Ukraine war. Department for Health asked for support to transport Ukrainian children to the UK who were undergoing cancer treatment.
"Initially, these children and their families had to cross the border to Poland so that they were initially in a place of safety, then we needed to get them to the UK.
"That's where I came in.
"Working with the aviation sector, I secured an airline and an airport to support with all the necessary arrangements for transporting the children. It was really humbling the quick support and flexibility of multiple teams across Government and externally to achieve this operation rapidly.”
Kate went on to explain that, although the job can be demanding, it is also extremely rewarding.
She added: "Partly the reason I love this job is because you do feel like you’re doing something important and helping other people, whether it's in an international crisis or just people wanting to get off on holiday."
Kate, who was recognised in the 2024 New Years Honours List, found out she was nominated at the end of November last year.
Speaking about how it felt to be nominated, she said: "I got a phone call from the Cabinet Office, and it was very much one of those moments of 'what are you talking about?'
"It was a complete shock but an absolute honour to have been nominated. I never imagined something like this would happen!
"To be recognised for the contribution to major event responses makes me feel very proud of the work my fantastic team do and what we achieve."
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