Every year, we invite nominations for our Special Medal. This is awarded to someone outside the clinical world who has made a valuable contribution to the care and quality of life of older people.
This year, we are delighted to present Liz Saunders with this award for her work with Independent Age, a national charity working to end financial hardship in later life, after seeing leaflets during outreach work in a previous role.
Liz is one of 12 advisers on Independent Age’s telephone advice and support service where she helps older people maximise their income, find and apply for relevant grants, and ensure they receive all the benefits they are eligible for. She told us that this is not easy for people, particularly those who are not computer literate or do not have access to one.
Before working for Independent Age, Liz worked for children’s services for many years and was an unpaid carer for her brother. Around ten years ago, she took the decision to change careers and became an adviser helping people in need of extra support at a local charity. Liz made this move as she felt it was too challenging for carers to find information on what support might be available to them.
Speaking about her work supporting older people, Liz told us:
One comment I will always remember, after helping someone claim pension credit, is that they will be able to eat more than one meal a day. They were 72 and had been living on a state pension below the minimum income guarantee for a single person weekly. This meant that they had access to further discounts on their council tax, which I helped them receive. A relatively small piece of work for me meant a huge improvement in the quality of life for them.
Liz was nominated for this award by her manager Zoe, who told us that she consistently goes the extra mile and deals with all her callers with compassion, expertise and tenacity. She spends time getting to know the hardest to help and has been able to secure over £31,000 in grants for those struggling with day-to-day expenses.
When she found out she had won this award, and that she had been nominated by Zoe, Liz told us she was overwhelmed, emotional and elated. She told us, “It was nice to be recognised, but really I’m just doing my job.”
Congratulations, Liz. We hope receiving this recognition shows you how much you are appreciated by your friends and colleagues at Independent Age, and we are looking forward to presenting you with your medal at our Autumn Meeting in Nottingham.
