Honorary Doctorate and Fellowship recipients

The Very Revd Dr Peter Atkinson MA DLitt (Hon)

Peter was born in Kent. He studied theology in Oxford, Cambridge, and Rome, and was ordained in the Church of England in 1979. He served in parishes in London, Surrey, Bath, and Sussex, and was Principal of Chichester Theological College from 1991 to 1994.

Peter was Chancellor of Chichester Cathedral from 1997 and became Dean of Worcester in 2007. He has written a study of friendship in the Christian tradition, Friendship and the Body of Christ (SPCK 2004); and a young person’s guide to the Bible, The Lion Encyclopedia of the Bible (Lion Hudson 2008), which has appeared in 12 languages. In 2014 he was given an honorary Doctorate of Letters by the University of Worcester. To mark his retirement in 2023, a collection of his sermons, A Way of Putting It, was published by Sacristy Press. He and his wife Lynne now divide their time between North Yorkshire and Normandy. 

Dr Anthony Evans BSc, PhD

Tony graduated from Cardiff University and completed a PhD in Physiology at the Medical School, Birmingham.  Having gained a PGCE from the University of Worcester in Biology, he served as Head of Biology, Head of Year, Assistant Head and Deputy Head at three different schools in Birmingham and Worcestershire, prior to joining Prince Henry’s High School as Headteacher in 2012. 

Since 2012, Prince Henry’s has twice been judged as Outstanding by Ofsted (most recently in March 2024) and been re-accredited as a Teaching School Hub, working closely with the University of Worcester. In 2024, Tony was instrumental in the conversion of Prince Henry’s to the Worcestershire Hills Trust alongside Blackwell and Charford First Schools and Bredon Hill Academy, all of whom share common values and a mission of ‘growing stronger together’. 

 Tony is married with two adult children and lives in Droitwich Spa. 

Sam Harris

Sam Harris is the Deputy Director of the National Union of Students (NUS) Charity where she supports more than 400 students’ unions to develop their capacity to change the world for students. Sam has worked at NUS for more than nine years, during which time she has transformed the organisation’s ability to support and strengthen the student movement to become more impactful and equitable. As well as her work at NUS Charity, Sam is the Chair of University of Suffolk Students’ Union and the Interim Chief Executive of University of South Wales Students’ Union. Sam has committed her life to making the world better for students, in the hope they have an experience like she did at the University of Worcester where she was a student and sabbatical officer.

Clive Mantle

Clive was a chorister at St John’s College, Cambridge, trained at the National Youth Theatre, and RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art).   

He is an award-winning actor best known on TV for Robin of Sherwood; The Vicar of Dibley; Casualty; Holby City; Game of Thrones; Sherlock, and dozens more. 

On stage, Clive was Olivier nominated for his role as Lennie in Of Mice and Men. Over 45 years he has toured extensively, alongside many West End and Repertory appearances. 

Films include; Alien 3; Churchill -Into the Storm; The More You Ignore Me; White Hunter, Black Heart, and many more. 

 Clive has recorded hundreds of radio plays, narrations, voice overs and talking books.  

 An award-winning author, his first children’s historical adventure, The Treasure at the Top of the World, won the People’s Book Prize 2019. It has been followed by A Jewel in the Sands of Time, and In the City of Fortune and Flames.  

Nic Millington FRSA

Nic moved to Herefordshire in the 1970’s and with former friends and students from Oxford established a residential centre for young people. It was here that Nic developed his passion for participatory media, and utilising new video technology, enabled teenagers to reflect and share their stories. 

Working with Pentabus Theatre Nic deepened his community film and photography work and in 1992 founded Rural Media with a mission to empower people in rural communities, particularly those most underserved, to access film, digital arts and media to communicate, create, and learn. He founded Borderlines Film Festival in 2002 supporting it into independence two years later.

Nic is a founding Director of Rural Media’s film & TV company, Rural Studios, Chair of Herefordshire Cultural Partnership, holds the BFI Paddy Whannel Award for innovation in film education, and the Herefordshire Diamond Day 2012 Award for excellence in business.   

Emeritus Professor Jo Smith OBE

Jo is an Emeritus Professor of Early Intervention and Psychosis at the University of Worcester. She is also a Clinical Advisor to the National Clinical Audit of Psychosis (NCAP) audits of Early Intervention in Psychosis Services in England, Wales, and Ireland. Previously, Jo was project lead for 'Suicide Safer' a multiagency student suicide prevention initiative at University of Worcester (2013-2019) and has contributed to, edited and authored several national guidelines and a book on student suicide prevention and postvention in Higher Education.

Prior to this, Jo enjoyed a 34-year NHS career (1981-2015) as a Clinical Psychologist working in severe mental illness services and as Clinical Lead for the Early Intervention in Psychosis Service in Worcestershire (1999-2015). Jo was formerly Chair of the Initiative to Reduce the Impact of Schizophrenia (IRIS: 1995-2010) and a Joint National EIP Programme Lead for England with National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE: 2004-2010).  Jo was awarded an OBE for her work in student suicide prevention in June 2023. 

Dee Christie OBE, FRCOT, MA, Dip.COT

Dee qualified as an Occupational Therapist (OT) in 1974, working in health and social care as a clinician and manager. She has championed the work of OTs in social care, setting up a new service for West Sussex County Council in 1987. She has been at the forefront of promoting community rehabilitation services including creating an award winning Reablement Service. She went on to chair the NICE guideline committee for Intermediate Care.  

Throughout her career Dee has worked in many voluntary roles for the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT), including as Chair of Council from 2006-2009. Promoting the continued development of OTs has been a cornerstone of Dee’s career. This continues in retirement, as Dee is now Chair of the Elizabeth Casson Trust, established by Dr Elizabeth Casson, founder of Occupational Therapy in UK. The Trust has continued its wide-ranging development opportunities adding a mentoring programme, personal leadership programme, the Focus on Fairness Observatory and much more.

Dee received a Fellowship from RCOT in 2022 and was honoured with an OBE for services to Occupational Therapy in 2024.

Dr Aidan Fowler MBBS FRCS

Aidan is the National Director of Patient Safety in England and a Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health and Social Care. He was previously the Director of NHS Quality Improvement (QI) and Patient Safety (PS) and Director of the 1000 Lives Improvement Service for NHS Wales. He had responsibility for QI/PS across the Welsh NHS and was a board member of Public Health Wales.  

Aidan was a Consultant Colorectal Surgeon in Gloucestershire for 10 years and Chief of Service for Surgery for four years before entering the NHS Leadership Academy Fast Track Executive Training Programme during which he worked as an executive at University Hospitals Bristol and subsequently worked briefly as a Medical Director in Mental Health and Community care in Worcestershire. Aidan trained as an Improvement Adviser (IA) with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in Boston and was IA to the South West Safer Patient Programme and has worked on Patient Safety with the West of England Academic Health Science Network. He has also worked as faculty with the IHI in the peri-operative safety domain in Qatar, infection reduction in Portugal and teaching improvement and safety in the UK and internationally. Aidan's surgical training was in the South West but he graduated in medicine from University College London. 

Professor Becky Francis CBE FBA FAcSS

Becky is Chief Executive Officer of the Education Endowment Foundation, an independent charity and grant funder dedicated to breaking the link between family income and educational achievement. She has temporarily stepped away from this position to lead the Independent Review of Curriculum and Assessment, following her appointment by the Secretary of State for Education. She was previously Director of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE), the world’s largest Faculty of Education. Her prior roles include Professor of Education and Social Justice at King’s College London and Standing Advisor to the Parliamentary Education Select Committee.   

Throughout her career, Becky has sought to maximise the impact of academic research by working closely with teachers and policymakers. She has spearheaded high-profile research programmes assessing the impact of major reforms in the English school system on educational inequalities and is sought out internationally as an advisor on education policy. 

Becky was the inaugural Charles Yidan Global Fellow at Harvard University. Her academic expertise and extensive publications centre on social identities (gender, ethnicity and social class) and inequalities in educational contexts.