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British Royals

The youngest ever British Empire medal recipient is honoured by the Countess of Wessex

By
4th November 2022

The Countess of Wessex has presented the British Empire Medal to its youngest ever recipient.

Tobias Weller BEM is 11 years old. He was awarded the British Empire Medal for his fundraising for Paces, a school and charity which supports people with cerebral palsy.

Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has raised over £150,000 for Paces. He was inspired by Captain Tom Moore and has now earned himself the nickname of Captain Tobias.

The Countess of Wessex presented the medal to Captain Tobias in a special ceremony at Paces, watched by his proud mum, Ruth Garbutt.

Tobias said afterwards ”I can’t believe I’m the youngest person in British history to receive such an honour.”

He also recently won a Pride of Britain Award and also collected the first ever Captain Sir Tom Moore Young Unsung Hero prize at the 2021 Sports Personality of the Year.

Sophie made the presentation during a visit to Sheffield.

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About author

Lydia Starbuck is Jubilee and Associate Editor at Royal Central and the main producer and presenter of the Royal Central Podcast and Royal Central Extra. Lydia is also a pen name of June Woolerton who is a journalist and writer with over twenty years experience in TV, radio, print and online. Her latest book, A History of British Royal Jubilees, is out now. Her new book, The Mysterious Death of Katherine Parr, will be published in March 2024. June is an award winning reporter, producer and editor. She's appeared on outlets including BBC 5 Live, BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Local Radio and has also helped set up a commercial radio station. June is also an accomplished writer with a wide range of material published online and in print. She is the author of two novels, published as e-books. She is also a marriage registrar and ceremony celebrant.