Charlotte Loftus
A 45-year-old auntie from North Staffordshire has been nominated as Carer of the Year in the Your Heroes Awards in recognition of “the remarkable care that she has offered and continues to offer to her nephew”.
Charlotte Loftus is a kinship foster carer through Stoke-on-Trent City Council and has cared for her nephew for almost a decade.
He came into Charlotte’s care when he was just two years old. Over the past 10 years Charlotte has completely reshaped her life to provide the secure, nurturing and therapeutic care that he needs.
He has significant additional needs and had a challenging life as a baby and toddler, which means Charlotte has had to learn methods to provide him with the very best care. Charlotte has had to not only show extraordinary patience and love but to hugely adapt her life to ensure he feels loved, understood, supported and valued.
This has included having to give up work when he came to her, and in her new role she has to adapt her hours and workload to fit around him. It’s this selfless and loving approach that has been key to helping him thrive.
Through her selflessness, determination and patience Charlotte has transformed his life and given him opportunities to flourish that may otherwise never have been possible. She believes in his potential and works every day to help him grow, achieve and most importantly to be happy.
As the nominator said: “Above all else, Charlotte prioritises her nephew’s wellbeing. Her commitment goes far beyond day-to day-care. Charlotte is a tireless advocate for her nephew, challenging professionals and services when necessary to ensure his best interests are at the centre of all decisions made.
“Charlotte has given him more than a home, she has given him love, stability and opportunities. She embodies the essence of fostering – love, resilience, advocacy and commitment.”
Charlotte said: “It’s been hugely challenging, but I have seen a huge development and progression in my nephew, which has been wonderful. I always wanted him to stay within the family and so the last decade has been difficult at times but so rewarding.”
“He’s an amazing kid who loves going to the seaside and gaming. I am going to look into the world of respite care, which could be a real possibility for me in the future.”
Sue Knipe
The first ever member of staff at a North Staffordshire nursing home is now in her 39th year of offering care and support to residents and fellow staff.
Sue Knipe has worked at Bradwell Hall Nursing Home since the doors first opened – indeed she was the very first member of staff through those doors when it opened with just one resident and has been ever-present for decades!
Living just down the road from the nursing home, Sue started her career as a care assistant and has held a number of positions before her role as a trainer.
Now aged 73, Sue has helped hundreds of residents as well as training many carers. She has been instrumental in shaping the quality of care delivered to some of the most vulnerable members of society.
Sue has been nominated in the Carer of the Year category of the Your Heroes Awards.
Her nominator said: “Sue is a true diamond who is loved by all and who is caring, honest, reliable and a friend to everyone she meets. Sue has left made a lasting impression on so many people that have come into contact with her at the nursing home.”
Sue said: “I absolutely love my job and although I now only do one day per week, I love that day. I have four children and when I left my previous job, I was looking for a new challenge, one where I could keep putting others first.
“I train our staff in areas such as moving and handling techniques and safeguarding, which helps to ensure that they are fully equipped with the skills, knowledge and confidence to deliver high-quality, compassionate care to our residents.
“The role has always been a labour of love and gives me huge satisfaction as it has a real sense of purpose and impact. I love building up friendships with so many people.
“There is great satisfaction in seeing staff grow in confidence, knowing that this directly improves residents’ wellbeing and lives. It really has been a hugely rewarding and fulfilling part of my life.”
Glynn and Ann O’Donnell
Glynn and Ann O’Donnell have battled ill health to provide a loving home to 37 youngsters over the past quarter of a century.
The Biddulph couple, aged 74 and 66, also have three of their own children.
Ann said: “Over those 25 years we’ve never had a day when we haven’t been fostering. We have never seen this as a job, it’s a calling. It’s so rewarding, because every child deserves a loving home to grow up in, and we give them just that.”
They often receive visits from people they have fostered over the years, including some who return with their own children.
Glynn and Ann have been nominated as Carers of the Year in the Your Heroes Awards by Marie Plant, Fostering Recruitment Officer at Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
She said: “I am nominating them for their compassion and empathy for the children that they care for and for their tenacity in ensuring that the appropriate long-term care is provided for each child.”
The couple have fostered youngsters from newborn to 18 years old, offering an environment filled with love, support and guidance.
Both have battled cancer, but that didn’t stop them in their desire to continue to provide a nurturing and positive environment for young people within their home.
The couple are child-focused and work hard to ensure the children in their care achieve their full potential.
Ann added: “I lost my mum when she was 49 and from that moment I always wanted to ensure that children had somewhere safe and supportive. That’s the least that they deserve.
“When they come back to us and bring their own children, that is just amazing. As long as we are fit and healthy, I see no reason why me and Glynn will ever stop providing a home for children that really need one.”
Paul and Sam Joynson
Foster carers Paul and Sam Joynson are so dedicated to the children and young people they support that they have moved house and Paul has given up his day job.
The Sandford Hill couple began their fostering journey in December 2023 alongside raising three youngsters of their own.
Sam’s parents were foster carers for a number of years and Paul had experience of the care system while he was growing up. For the couple, both in their early thirties, fostering is a calling.
Marie Plant, Fostering Recruitment Officer at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “They are so dedicated and passionate about fostering. They are just so proud to be foster carers.
“The couple have cared for a baby since birth who has come on amazing since being in their care, they are also caring for a sibling group. The couple are passionate about keeping brothers and sisters together.”
Paul said: “We are hugely upbeat people and try to take the positive from any negative situation. We believe that everyone has the right to a loving childhood and a good start in life.
“We get so much satisfaction from what we are doing. Our belief is that everyone should try to spread kindness whenever they can. It’s a harsh world that we live in, but we are fiercely determined to do what we can to make it better. That means we will be helping as many kids as we can.
“We want every child in our care to feel valued and loved.”
Paul and Sam Joynson have been nominated in the Carer of the Year category of the Your Heroes Awards 2025.
Marie Plant
With more than a dozen years of going above and beyond for foster parents, children, families and extended families in Stoke-on-Trent, Marie Plant has been described as ‘phenomenal’ and ‘an inspiration to us all’.
Marie has been Fostering Recruitment Officer at Stoke-on-Trent City Council for five years and has worked within her team of 33 since 2012. Her passion and dedication have help transform the lives of countless children and carers.
With a background in health and social care, Marie is not just the first point of contact for prospective foster carers, she provides “a broad after-care service for everyone who I come into contact with in fostering that needs support, guidance and help.”
Based at the Civic Centre in Stoke, Marie can also be found at numerous events doing outreach work at weekends and out-of-hours. She is renowned for her caring and empathetic understanding of children and carers and their motivations, challenges and concerns, offering professional and enthusiastic support.
Marie said: “It’s an amazing job. I am hugely passionate about helping others and helping to find solutions whenever and wherever I can. My role is all-encompassing and ranges from initial visits to social media, and from attending functions to producing a monthly newsletter.
“This role has totally changed my outlook on life and I get so much job satisfaction from it. It’s great to work passionately for children in care, families, extended families and everyone else I come into contact with.
“We have around 370 carers in the city, but over 1,100 children that require our support. So we are always on the lookout for new carers. However, we are making real progress, and fostering within the city is in a far better place now.
“My hopes for the future are to get more and more foster carers in, retain all the brilliant ones we already have and to keep progressing as a team.”
Marie has been nominated in the Carer of the Year category of the Your Heroes Awards 2025.
Angela Osborne
Angela Osborne has been called “an asset to Stoke-on-Trent” for the caring role she plays for her two granddaughters.
The 58-year-old, from Stoke, has been a foster carer for the girls, now aged 10 and 12, for the past five years.
Angela, who previously worked for the NHS, has been working tirelessly with the local authority and professionals to ensure her granddaughters’ needs and wishes have remained at the centre of every decision.
Throughout it all, Angela has shown strength, resilience and fierce determination to advocate for her granddaughters.
She said: “The two girls mean everything to me, and I always put them first. Everything I do, I do for them. I always do what is the best for the girls and act in their best interests.”
Angela has been nominated in the Carer of the Year category of the Your Heroes Awards by supervising social worker Nikita Randle-Day from Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
Nikita said: “Angela has overcome many hurdles both professionally and personally throughout this process and has advocated for the children since day one.
“She has shown emotional resilience and ensured that all those working around the children are doing so with them at the very centre.”
Angela’s granddaughters are thriving under her care, something she takes immense pride in.
Angela added: “They have grown up into such lovely, respectful girls and I am so proud of them.
“Nikita has been absolutely amazing. She is so supportive and helpful and has provided wonderful training.”
Denise Owen-Simpson and Paul Simpson
A sign on the back of a North Staffordshire bus was the inspiration for a married couple to start a long foster caring journey themselves.
Denise Owen-Simpson and Paul Simpson, from Newchapel, already had one grown-up child of their own and were contemplating fostering youngsters when they spotted an advertisement on a bus which gave them the gentle push they needed to take the plunge.
Seventeen years later the couple, now aged 67 and 68, have cared for around 30 youngsters including babies and say that it’s the best decision that they’ve ever made.
Denise and Paul love and support every child they have taken care of and whilst it can be emotionally hard to move a child on to adoption or back to their birth family they always remain professional but show care and love with each transition.
They have been nominated in the Carer of the Year category of the Your Heroes Awards by Marie Plant, the Fostering Recruitment Officer at Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
Marie said: “Their dedication and commitment to foster cannot be understated. It’s hard to put into words what an absolute amazing foster carers they truly are. This is why they truly deserve a nomination. They show empathy in their role each and every day.”
Denise and Paul throw themselves headlong into providing a loving, nurturing environment. Paul is Vice Chair of the Foster Carers Association while Denise is also a member and heavily involved. The couple attend any fostering social events, helping to prepare, serve the buffet, clean up – whatever needs to be done.
Paul works in hospitality on a self-employed basis and tailors his workload and schedule based on the needs of children in their care.
Denise said: “We looked after our parents during ill health and have always looked to put others first. Our daughter has exactly the same outlook on life as us.
“We think sharing our lives and the love we have with children who need a caring environment is a blessing and we absolutely love it. Of course it can have its challenging moments, but we wouldn’t change it for the world and would strongly advise others thinking of fostering to do it.”