Alnwick's Barbara Scrimshaw, 93, Receives British Empire Medal for PDSA Fundraising

A remarkable fundraising story has been honoured close to home. Barbara Scrimshaw, 93, from Alnwick, has received the British Empire Medal in recognition of 45 years of tireless fundraising for PDSA, the veterinary charity that provides free and low-cost treatment to sick and injured pets. Over that time she has helped raise more than £100,000.

The medal was presented at an investiture held in The Alnwick Garden by the Lord Lieutenant of Northumberland, Dr Caroline Pryer, who represents the Crown in the county. It is a fitting local setting for a lifetime of quiet, determined work on behalf of animals in need.

Four decades of raffles, tombolas and homemade cakes

Barbara's fundraising began in the 1970s, after she and her late husband turned to PDSA for charitable veterinary care for their Shetland sheepdog, Shep. Wanting to give something back, she started with a simple collection box on the counter of the family shop.

From there it grew. After moving to the east coast the couple set up the Bridlington fundraising group, running regular raffles and tombolas and selling homemade cakes and crafts. When they relocated to Alnwick in 2017 to be nearer family, Barbara kept going, holding tombola and raffle stalls in local supermarkets and care homes and selling her handmade crafts through her son's homeware and gift shop in the town, with every penny going to the charity.

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PDSA is one of the UK's leading veterinary charities, providing treatment for the pets of people who cannot afford private vets' fees, funded almost entirely by public donations.

A lifetime of service

The British Empire Medal is not Barbara's first recognition. She volunteered for more than 20 years with the RNLI, the lifeboat charity, receiving a silver badge for her long service, and her decades with PDSA were also marked during National Volunteers' Week.

It is a well-earned honour for someone whose generosity has quietly benefited animals and their owners for the best part of half a century.

You can read the original report in the Northumberland Gazette.

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