A chef who enjoyed a distinguished army career before becoming a university stalwart has been awarded a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
Father-of-one Ivan Hopkins, who was born in March and went to Hereward School, has been recognised for services to Higher Education.
The 48 year-old joined the British Army Royal Logistics Corps in 1982 and served in Kenya, the Falkland Islands, Belize, Cyprus, Canada, Germany and Northern Ireland, where he did three tours.
He joined Nottingham Trent University in 1994 as a chef and then progressed to executive chef before assuming the role of Head of Catering and Hospitality in January.
He said: “I am absolutely delighted to be awarded this honour. It was a most pleasant surprise and totally unexpected. I have been privileged to be part of Nottingham Trent University for the past 20 years and I am honoured that my contribution has been recognised in this way.”
Mr Hopkins has been married to Claire for 17 years and they have a daughter Charlotte aged 12.
His proud mother Jean French said: “We are absolutely over the moon. You would never expect something like this to happen.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here