Professor Dame Elizabeth Anionwu OM DBE FRCN FQICN, Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the University of West London and a pioneering figure in sickle cell and thalassaemia care, described as one of the United Kingdom’s greatest ever nurses, was last night recognised with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the equality charity Diversity UK.
Lopa Patel MBE, Chair of Diversity UK, hosted a fireside chat with Dame Elizabeth to explore her memoir Dreams from My Mother as part of the annual Paul Stephenson Lecture on race equality. This year’s theme marked the sixtieth anniversary of the first Race Relations Act of 1965 and was titled Blueprint for Change. The discussion examined the actions and plans needed to drive progress, with a particular focus on addressing inequalities.
The fireside chat marked the culmination of a year that included three major Diversity UK events focused on healthcare and the race and gender health gaps. These were the International Women’s Day event on Closing the Gender Health Gap, the Diversity Tech Summit 2025 with a focus on Women’s Health, and a dynamic Frugal AI debate on doing more with less in healthcare.
A Blueprint for Change
The discussion concluded with a forward looking message inspired by the final chapters of Dame Elizabeth’s memoir. Lopa Patel outlined a practical route to activism that she had drawn from the book, encouraging the formation of supportive groups, deep study of the issues at hand, careful documentation of experiences, the gathering of data and evidence, and the importance of seeking help when needed. Dame Elizabeth reflected that both her proudest achievements and her hardest setbacks serve as reminders that meaningful change requires patience, courage and collective effort.
A Night of Inspiration and Shared Purpose
As the event drew to a close, Diversity UK presented Dame Elizabeth Anionwu with its Lifetime Achievement Award. It was presented by the Trustees alongside Claire Carroll, Partner at Eversheds Sutherland, who said, “At Eversheds Sutherland, we have enjoyed a long and rewarding partnership with Diversity UK and it was our absolute pleasure to host the annual Paul Stephenson Lecture once again. It was also a real privilege to hear Dame Elizabeth Anionwu’s inspirational words.”
“Dame Elizabeth is being recognised with this Diversity UK Lifetime Achievement Award to mark her sixty years of pioneering work,” said Lopa Patel MBE. “She was the United Kingdom’s first Sickle Cell Nurse Specialist, establishing the country’s first nurse led sickle cell and thalassaemia counselling service in 1979. She later became Dean of the School of Adult Nursing Studies at the University of West London, where she also founded the Mary Seacole Centre for Nursing Practice. She is now Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the same institution and she is, at heart, an activist. She rediscovered Mary Seacole’s legacy and, as a Life Patron of the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue Appeal, spent more than twelve years working tirelessly with others to raise the five hundred thousand pounds needed to establish the statue, which was unveiled on 30 June 2016 in the gardens of St Thomas’s Hospital. It was the first statue in the United Kingdom to honour a named black woman.”
For young people from mixed heritage or non traditional families, and for those entering healthcare or activism, Dame Elizabeth’s advice was clear. Carry your dreams with you, as they can become a compass for both personal growth and social transformation.
Click here to learn more about the Diversity UK Lifetime Achievement Award winners.
About Professor Dame Elizabeth Anionwu OM DBE FRCN FQICN
Professor Dame Elizabeth Anionwu OM DBE FRCN FQICN is an Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the University of West London and a pioneering figure in sickle cell and thalassaemia care. Born in Birmingham in 1947 to Irish and Nigerian parents, she was inspired to become a nurse after receiving exceptional care as a child.
She began her NHS career at 16 and went on to become the UK’s first Sickle Cell Nurse Specialist, establishing the country’s first nurse-led sickle cell and thalassaemia counselling service in 1979. She later became Dean of the School of Adult Nursing Studies at the University of West London, where she also founded the Mary Seacole Centre for Nursing Practice.
Dame Elizabeth has written extensively on nursing and health inequalities, including her memoir Dreams From My Mother (2021). She has played a central role in honouring Mary Seacole’s legacy, serving as Vice-Chair of the appeal for the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue unveiled in 2016.
Her many honours include a CBE (2001), Fellowship of the Royal College of Nursing (2004), a DBE (2017), and the Order of Merit (2022). She has also received numerous lifetime achievement awards and honorary doctorates. In May 2023 she carried the Sovereign’s Orb during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
Dreams From My Mother by Dame Elizabeth N. Anionwu
It’s 1947 and a sheltered Catholic girl is studying Classics at Newnham College, Cambridge. She is the first one in her family to go to university – and then she discovers that she’s pregnant. The father is also a student at Cambridge, studying law. And he is black.
Despite pressure to give up her baby for adoption, the young mother has big dreams for her child’s future. Her daughter Elizabeth overcomes a background of shame, stigma, and discrimination, to become one of the UK’s greatest ever nurses, and the first ever sickle cell nurse specialist. Recently named a BBC 100 Women of the Year 2020 and awarded a Damehood, Dame Elizabeth Anionwu has continued her work throughout her retirement, and recently brought to the nation’s attention how Covid-19 has had a devastating effect on Black and Asian communities.
Dreams From My Mother is an inspiring story about childhood, race, identity, family, friendship, hope and what makes us who we are. Ultimately, it is an incredibly moving story of a mother and a daughter separated by society, but united in the dreams they shared for her future.