Islington’s heroes awarded the Freedom of the Borough

Jennette Arnold OBE first came to Islington as a child of the Windrush generation, and lived in the borough’s loving and supportive Montserratian community. Her family moved to Birmingham, and after qualifying as a State Registered Nurse, Jennette returned to Islington to work for the Royal College of Nursing. An indefatigable campaigner, she protested against Government cuts to public services in the 1980s, in addition to her work on behalf of trade unionists and the victims of female genital mutilation. In 1994, she became a councillor in Islington and served for eight years, including a term as Deputy Mayor. In 2000, she was elected to the newly-formed London Assembly, at first on a London-wide basis, and then from 2004 until May 2021 as the Member for the North East constituency, covering Islington. Through her work, Jennette has improved the lives of countless local people as a tireless advocate for quality public services, workers’ rights, women’s safety, racial equality and many other important issues. She was elected as the Chair of the London Assembly five times, and in 2009 awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to London and Londoners.

Yvonne Conolly CBE was recognised posthumously for her contributions to education. Having first qualified as a teacher in Jamaica, she arrived in Britain in 1963 with £36 in her pocket. After working as a teacher and deputy headteacher in Swiss Cottage, Yvonne became the UK’s first Black female headteacher, at Ring Cross Primary School in Holloway, when she was just 29 years old. She shone a path for the many children of colour who attended Ring Cross Primary and blazed a trail for other Black educators around the country in the face of prejudice and discrimination. Her lasting legacy to the people of Islington and beyond are the many who she educated, helped and inspired. Yvonne very sadly passed away earlier this year; she was described as a friend to all who knew her, and as a “history maker” by the Department for Education.

London Ambulance Service, represented last night by Assistant Director of Operations for North Central London, Alex Ewings, and members of staff from Islington Ambulance Station and North Central London, have similarly, played a huge role in helping the people of Islington stay safe and healthy during the pandemic. Staff and volunteers across the organisation have been working tirelessly to save lives and respond to urgent and emergency calls with bravery and kindness in challenging circumstances. Over the past 20 months demand on the Service has increased and some days the Service has been taking up to 8,000 999 calls a day compared to 5,500 on a typical ‘busy’ day. London Ambulance Service are valued partners of the council.

The Whittington Health NHS Trust provides life-saving, personal, and co-ordinated care to half a million people across north London, including from the much-loved Whittington Hospital in Archway. They have been helping local people live longer, healthier lives for over 170 years. During the Covid-19 pandemic, staff from across the organisation mobilised to provide care to patients who needed it – with many staff redeployed from their usual roles to help care for patients with Covid-19 or ensure vital services like cancer services and district nursing were maintained despite the huge pressures. Nearly 2,000 people have been admitted to Whittington Hospital with Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic, with staff making exceptional sacrifices to care for them. Last night at Islington Town Hall the trust was represented by frontline workers, and CEO Siobhan Harrington.

Jennette Arnold OBE said: “Freedom of the Borough is a great honour and I am delighted to have received it. Some of my early childhood was spent in Islington and much later I returned to live and work here. A key part of my life has been in politics and I have represented the people of Islington in various roles over the last 27 years. It has felt like being part of a large family, which makes this award so much more special”.

Chief Executive of London Ambulance Service, Daniel Elkeles said: "It's a great honour for our staff and volunteers in Islington - and across the Service - to be recognised in this way after working so tirelessly over the past 20 months.

"Faced with one of the greatest healthcare challenges in history, our teams have made enormous personal sacrifices and have coped with huge changes to how they work. Many have experienced long separations from family, and losing loved ones and cherished colleagues to the virus.

"The Freedom of the Borough award is a real tribute to the dedication, strength and professionalism, of all those working across the Service, as they have cared for Londoners in need."

Siobhan Harrington, CEO of Whittington Health said: “Whittington Health staff have worked unimaginably hard to care for the people and patients who needed us during the Covid-19 pandemic and we continue to do so to ensure that everyone who needs care can be treated as quickly and safely as possible. Being awarded Freedom of the Borough of Islington is a touching tribute that I know will mean a great deal to all of my colleagues and is another example of the incredible support we have received from our community at our most challenging of times so my thanks go to Islington Council and the people of Islington for this recognition, which we accept with deep pride.”

The ceremony took place at the Town Hall on Monday (18^th October) evening, and was attended by key council figures including Leader of the Council Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz, Islington Mayor Cllr Troy Gallagher and Chief Executive Linzi Roberts-Egan.

Leader of the Council, Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz said: "It is a great privilege to award the Freedom of the Borough to Islington's heroes who have done so much to improve the lives of local people. Yvonne Conolly and Jennette Arnold are both shining examples of local leaders whose years of public service have made life better for people in Islington. It is brilliant to be honouring these two fantastic Black women whilst we are celebrating Black History Month. Their accomplishments are truly appreciated here in Islington.

“Our brilliant health workers, too, are so richly deserving of this recognition. The last two years have shown just how massive their contribution is to life in the borough. They have worked so hard to keep us safe during the health crisis, which must have been exhausting and overwhelming at times. On behalf of Islington Council, I want to say that we are so grateful for their selfless service.”

Islington Mayor, Cllr Troy Gallagher said: “The title of Honorary Freeperson is the highest honour the council can bestow. It is reserved for people and organisations who are exceptional in their service to the public. I can say with complete certainty that each of these four recipients is indeed exceptional.”