Jacob the Pilot wins Pride of Britain Award for his incredible fundraising efforts

We’re proud to announce that Jacob, known as Jacob the Pilot because of his love of planes and flying, has been awarded the prestigious Good Morning Britain Young Fundraiser of the Year award in the 2024 Pride of Britain Awards.

The award celebrates Jacob’s remarkable contribution to raising over £100,000 towards patient care at St Gemma’s Hospice, which will have a significant impact on the care and support we provide to local families.

On 27th December 2020, Jacob’s mummy Andrea passed away at home at the age of just 49 with Jacob and his daddy Andrew by her side. St Gemma’s Hospice community team played a part in helping Andrea come to terms with cancer and helped Jacob get his mummy home for Christmas just before she died so they could have one last Christmas together as a family.

Since then, Jacob and Andrew have taken on challenge after challenge, climbing mountains all over the world to raise funds for St Gemma’s in memory of Jacob’s mummy. From the Yorkshire Three Peaks, which Jacob climbed when he was just seven years old, to Mount Toubkal in Morocco, Jacob’s determination to ‘never back down, never give up’ has been inspirational.

When they found out Jacob has won this award, Andrew said:

I feel quite emotional about Jacob winning a Pride of Britain award. His mum would be so proud. There would be lots of tears.

Kate Goldring, Director of Income Generation at St Gemma’s, said:

The entire team at St Gemma’s Hospice is incredibly proud of Jacob for receiving this prestigious Pride of Britain award. Since caring for Jacob’s mum Andrea in 2020, Jacob has not only made a significant financial impact on our hospice through his fundraising but has also inspired countless others in our community.

He recently helped us to open a brand new facility for children and young people just like him, grappling with the difficult experience of losing a loved one, a very special day indeed. Jacob embodies the spirit of compassion and resilience we see so often in the families we care for, he has demonstrated that age is never a barrier to making a difference. So, this week we celebrate Jacob and the incredible contribution he has made to our charity, a very worthy winner of this award.

Jacob opening the Cabin in 2023, which is a dedicated space for the hundreds of youngsters supported by St Gemma’s bereavement team each year.

We’re so proud of you Jacob. Thank you so much for everything you’ve done to support other families in Leeds.