'Thank you NHS!' - Belmont Mill Hill Preparatory pupil named London winner in Health Education England careers contest

Lainee Gray, aged 10, has been named the London regional winner in an annual contest designed to highlight the range of roles within the NHS, and encourage young people to consider a health or care career.

Lainee, a pupil at Belmont Mill Hill Preparatory School in North London created a lively and informative presentation for her winning entry, including facts and figures about the NHS, people who work in healthcare, and case studies of how different doctors treat patients. The judges were particularly impressed with her focus on mental health.

Health Education England (HEE) runs the Step Into The NHS competition in primary schools, each year to highlight the many career paths in health and care. This year’s competition saw an impressive 1,428 entries from more than 1,800 pupils in 96 primary schools throughout England. As well as learning about some of the 350 careers in the NHS, pupils had chance to say thank you to the NHS in their own personal and creative way.

Lainee was awarded top prize for the London region, receiving a certificate and a £25 Amazon voucher to spend.

The judges were A&E doctor and TV presenter Dr Ronx Ikharia, medical student Tash Binnie and careers expert Tristram Hooley.

Winner, Lainee Gray said:

“I was really shocked to find out and really excited. I didn't think I would win. I really enjoyed taking part in this competition because the NHS have helped me throughout my lifetime and help to save lives this past year. They are heroes and I believe everyone had forgotten about how important they are to all of us every day, not just because of this pandemic. Thank you NHS!”

Class teacher, Rachel Sutherns said:

“We are delighted to be part of this competition and to support and promote the work of the NHS. We are extremely proud of Lainee; she put in a huge amount of effort to research and then put together her entry. I know that she enjoyed the whole process and learned a great deal about how the NHS have helped her family, the diversity of roles within the NHS and how these roles really challenge stereotypes.”

The Step Into The NHS contest provides a host of useful teaching resources to help raise students’ aspirations and understanding of the many careers available in the NHS.

The resources help students learn about themselves by encouraging them to explore the wide range of jobs in the health service.

Dr Navina Evans, Chief Executive, Health Education England, said: "This year’s entries for the Step Into The NHS contest have been imaginative, fun and inspiring. I am absolutely thrilled to congratulate Lainee with her insightful and creative Powerpoint presentation. Well done to Lainee and all our winners.”

Developed in partnership with teachers, the Step Into The NHS website includes a careers quiz, real-life stories from NHS staff, work experience tips and learning resources to help young people explore the hundreds of roles within the NHS: https://www.stepintothenhs.nhs.uk/

For details of all the career opportunities the NHS can offer, visit the Health Careers website here:- https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/