THE volunteers who face extremely challenging situations and conditions to help others often need support themselves.

And it’s thanks to people like Martin Knops from Shipton-on-Cherwell that they get it.

The 65-year-old is one of 29 people from Oxfordshire named in the Queen’s New Year Honours list. He will receive an OBE for his services to Oxford-based charity Oxfam.

Mr Knops retired in August after 26 years with the charity.

He said: “I am deeply touched by the affection and confidence that Oxfam staff have in nominating me for this award. The honour is entirely theirs and reflects the commitment and dedication not only of them, but all of those who support the work of Oxfam.”

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Martin Knops

 

Mr Knops’ role as the sole occupational counsellor for Oxfam meant giving support to staff and volunteers throughout the UK and overseas.

Mr Knops now has his own private psychotherapy practice based in Shipton-on-Cherwell, where he lives with his wife Brenda and their two children, Olivia and Mark who are both studying music at university.

Professor Peter Ratcliffe, 59, head of the Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, in Oxford, was also honoured as one of three people in Oxfordshire to be given the title of Knight Bachelor for his pioneering work. The others were Paul Collier, for services to promoting research and policy change in Africa, and Dr Noel Malcolm, a senior research fellow at All Souls College for services to scholarship, journalism and European history.

Prof Ratcliffe has discovered a previously unknown way that cells in the human body detect hypoxia – a term for low oxygen levels in the blood. He said: “I have been working on this for about 25 years.

“To be honest, most things in the lab do not work – so when they do it is terrific.”

He said the findings will help understand and improve treatment for conditions such as cancer, heart disease, strokes, vascular disease, and anaemia.

He lives in Kidlington with wife, Fiona. They have four children, Anna, Alice, Robert and David.

Karen Hewitt, a tutor at Oxford University, was awarded an MBE for services to building academic and cultural understanding between the UK and Russia.

Professor Frances Kirwan, of Oxford University receives a damehood for services to mathematics.