THE Pride of St Helens Awards, sponsored by Mikhail Hotel & Leisure Group, will take place on Friday, November 22.

We're profiling the shortlisted nominees this week - here are the profiles of the three in the running for the Pride of St Helens Courage Award, sponsored by Paramount Digital.  

Abigail Sharp

(Image: Abi Sharp)

ABIGAIL Sharp from Haydock is only 20 but after being diagnosed age four with Alport Syndrome she has experienced a lot in her life already.

Alport Syndrome is a rare genetic disorder of the kidney’s filtration system.

The condition can cause hearing loss, eye problems and kidney failure. In Abi this has affected her eyesight and hearing and she is on different medications to prolong the life of her kidneys.

Despite this, the Edge Hill student does all she can to raise awareness of the condition and also raise funds for other good causes.

Aged 14 she cut off 15 inches of her hair to donate to The Little Princess Trust to make wigs for children suffering from hair loss due to illness or injury and then aged 17 she did a skydive raising £1,000 for Claire House Hospice.

Due to the rarity of her condition, Abi also recently took part in a three month long drug trial in London to help others with Alport Syndrome, after it was discovered she was one of only three people in a well enough condition across the entire UK to participate.

On her nomination, Abi said: “I’m really shocked but glad that people have thought enough to nominate me really, it’s nice to know people think what I’ve done is a bit special.”

Ayda’s rescuers

(Image: Ayda and her mum with the officers and Janet)

WE are all grateful to our emergency services, but never realise how much they put themselves on the line until remarkable stories highlight their true bravery.

Such was the case in April when then three-year-old Ayda Kenny wandered from her home.

Following an area wide search for the toddler, PC Nathan Beavin, an officer who was fairly new in service at the time, spotted Ayda face down in a lake and alerted other officers.

He climbed in the lake and got stuck when trying to get her out. Constable Ian Hide took over the rescue.

Alongside fellow officers Constable Martyn Hayes and Constable Ben Phillips the team performed CPR until an off duty respiratory nurse Janet Grace, who was visiting her sister nearby, joined in compressions.

Their swift actions saved Ayda’s life, and after a stay in hospital where her future was unclear, she has been left with no apparent long term damage.

This remarkable story has led to the officers and Janet being nominated for the Courage award.

Ayda’s mum Alex Price said: “When I learned that the officers and Janet were shortlisted for this award I was thrilled, without them I’d be a grieving mum today.

“I work in Walton Hospital, other patients who suffered hypoxic brain injuries like Ayda have been left with life long injuries, I cannot stress enough how they saved her life that day.”

Barbara Smith

(Image: barbara Smith)

PSYCHOTHERAPIST Barbara Smith may work at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital as her day job while also doing private work, but the brave gran also has spent two months each year for the last 17 years going to war zones and areas in need offering her services with the British Red Cross.

69-year-old Barbara from Rainhill was scrambled to Tel Aviv to offer specialist counselling to British nationals leaving Israel in the immediate aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 attack.

She was later deployed through the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office to help Brits escaping Gaza into Egypt. She is often a team leader on this trips and has previously helped survivors of the Mumbai 2008 and Tunisia 2015 terror attacks.

She also led British Red Cross psychosocial support teams to Tel Aviv and Cairo as part of the UK Government’s efforts to help over 1,000 British nationals and their dependants return safely to the UK.

Despite all of this, the news of Barbara – who is soon to become a great grandmother – being shortlisted for the Courage Award was ‘a shock’ to her.

She said: “It’s a shock really to be nominated for this award because if I’m truly honest I don’t even think about it, if you are on call and get the call you go and you help who you can then you come home. 

“As a humanitarian if there is something you can do to help others then I believe you should do it.”