Diverse FM team member honoured with British Empire Medal in Queen's Birthday Honours List

Halle Etheridge is the training co-ordinator at Diverse FM and was among 450 nominees who were put forward specifically for their contribution to the Coronavirus response.

Halle said: “I am very grateful to be recognised in the 2020 Honours list and delighted that the work of Diverse FM Community Media & Training has been acknowledged.

"I feel very fortunate to be supported by such an enthusiastic and dynamic team, driven by the vision to put community first."

In June this year, The Queen agreed to defer the publication of the Birthday Honours 2020 List in order to respect the circumstances around Covid-19 and to provide an early opportunity to recognise some of those involved in the response to Coronavirus.

The recognition comes after an incredible year for both Halle and Diverse FM - which broadcasts 24 hours a day to the people of Luton and surrounding towns and villages.

Diverse FM supports young people who are employed or at risk of offending or offending, with a range of nationally-recognised qualifications, courses and other training programmes.

Halle’s role at Diverse FM is to develop and promote the Teaching and Training services via her role as Training Coordinator to the people of Luton, incluiding through a number of government funding opportunities such as the Study Programme, Building Better Opportunities (BBO), Community Led Local Development (CLLD) programme and others.

During pandemic, Halle travelled to needy students' homes to provide them with training materials as well as one-to-one support.

Besides working full-time and having her own family to care for, Halle provided much-needed support with food parcels to the local community. In the final 12 weeks its the food parcel delivery programme, Diverse FM supported 2,058 people, provided 42,518 healthy nutritious meals at a cost of £84,067

Kamal Acharya, chairman of Diverse FM Community Media & Training, said: “Halle’s legacy is clear to see. We are now in a fantastic position to ensure that youth and community development, education and learning in the community is given the prominence it deserves.

"I would like to congratulate her on behalf of everyone at Diverse FM Community Media & Training."