Hospital Chaplain Rev Martin Abrams who led the Southport Vigil 'proud and humbled' to be awarded MBE
Report by Andrew Brown

LOCAL Hospital Chaplain Rev Martin Abrams says he is:- "proud and humbled" after visiting Windsor Castle to be awarded his MBE by Princess Anne. The Spiritual Care and Chaplaincy Manager for Mersey and West Lancs Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust led the vigil which took place for thousands of families just 24 hours after last summer's Southport tragedy which saw three young girls tragically killed while other children and adults were wounded. 

The Rev Martin Abrams MBE was honoured on:- Wednesday, 26 November 2025, where he said he and the Princess Royal discussed:- "trying to find the words when there are no words.”

Martin's impact and influence has been huge not just in recent months but also over the past few years, coming to the fore on a daily basis in his work as a Hospital chaplain where he supports people who are often at the lowest points of their life. He has proved to be a daily inspiration with his unwavering support for people in the community during the Covid pandemic matched by his tremendous influence as a spiritual and community lead following the tragic events in Southport in July 2024 and since. In April, he was awarded the Sefton Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 Grand Pride Of Sefton Awards. He is a much valued member of the local community.

Rev Martin Abrams said:- "Being awarded an MBE at Windsor Castle was a remarkable, unforgettable day. It was absolutely marvelous. It was so well organised, and it was lovely to be honoured by Princess Anne. She was very charming, we shared a very heartfelt conversation.  I was amazed by how much she knew about Southport. She asked me lots of questions about the vigil, about how people in our community have been coping since the tragedy, and how things are. The Royal Family has been so supportive of Southport. King Charles III cut short his holiday in Balmoral to visit Southport shortly after the tragedy, which meant a lot to everyone in the Town. William and Kate have visited twice, the 1st time to speak with some of the families affected and the 1st responders, and the second time to visit children and teaching staff in local schools. Being invited to Windsor Castle to receive my MBE was an incredibly humbling, proud and moving experience. I'm very grateful for all the kind messages I have received from so many people since then. I have read through all the lovely comments from people. I am simply blown away. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I always find recognition like this difficult as I think I am only doing my job. I believe awards and honours are not about an individual, but about the support received from the teams you work with. To be recognised with this MBE is an incredible personal honour, but I would also like to say a huge thank you and dedicate it to my wonderful colleagues, family and friends.”

Rev Martin Abrams has been at the forefront of the local community, both within the Trust and wider afield. He said:- "This summer, the 1st Anniversary of the Southport tragedy was very poignant. I know that the families of the girls didn't want there to be a big thing made of it. In 2024, just after the tragedy, hundreds of members of our NHS team at Mersey and West Lancs Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust came together to mark a minute's silence for the girls, to reflect and to pay their respects. On the 1st Anniversary we again held a minute's silence, and again hundreds of our team gathered in silence. It was deeply moving. The families of the girls have been amazing. What they have done is utterly selfless; they have reacted to a devastating tragedy by doing all they can to make positive things happen. Sergio Aguiar is currently running a series of marathons around the world to raise funds; I saw him running past me at the London Marathon! The new Bebe's Hive is being built in Southport, while the beautiful new playground has been opened at Churchtown Primary School. All 3 families of the girls who died have set up their own charities (Elsie's Story, Bebe's Hive and Alice's WonderDance) and everyone in our community is in awe of them all.” 

Martin took on the incredibly tough job of leading the vigil in the Town Hall Gardens in Southport town centre just 24 hours after the tragedy occurred, which was attended by thousands of local families who found togetherness and comfort from his words.

Martin said:- "Leading that vigil was immense pressure. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. It all happened very quickly. I only knew about it three or four hours beforehand. I spoke with my wife Heather about it that day, not knowing what to expect. We thought there may be around 100, 200 people at the vigil. By the time I turned up, there were thousands of people there. The Town Hall Gardens was packed. There were lots of TV crews there as well; I didn't realise the vigil would also be screened around the world. The vigil was a much needed way for everyone in our community to come together in grief. Nobody knew what they needed. They just knew they needed to do something. I was humbled to be asked to lead the vigil and to say a few words that day. I'm extremely proud of how people in Southport have continued to put our arms around each other as a community ever since.” 

Mersey and West Lancs Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Chief Executive Rob Cooper said:- "Reverend Martin Abrams has devoted his life to serving others, and we could not be prouder to see that dedication recognised with an MBE this week. His tireless commitment, kindness in every interaction, and compassion for those who need it most has made a lasting impact on so many. This honour is a wonderful recognition of the difference he continues to make every single day.”

Alongside Martin, four members of staff at Southport Hospital have been recognised this year as recipients of a Medal of the Order of the British Empire (BEM):-

• Dr Chris Goddard, Consultant in Anaesthetics and Intensive Care.
  

• Dr George Bramham, Acute Care Common Stem Doctor.
  

• Liz Parsons, Theatre Practitioner.
  

• Martin Johnson, Operating Department Practitioner.

Chris, George, Liz and Martin were nominated for being key members of the emergency response and surgical team at Southport Hospital, who provided immediate care to those affected by the tragic incident in July 2024.

In his time at the Trust, Rev Martin Abrams has transformed the service he manages beyond all recognition.

He advocates that all patients in Hospital should have access to spiritual support, even if they do not have faith. 

He leads a team of chaplains from all religions as well as volunteer Spiritual Ambassadors on most wards and departments, all of whom provide a wonderful service to patients and their families at a time of greatest need.

His vision, leadership and organisational skills have been particularly employed in arranging annual ceremonies so that staff and families in the wider community can remember their loved ones.

Ceremonies included a Covid memorial service and annual services such as:- a baby memorial service and a wave of light event during baby loss awareness week.

On many occasions, Martin held the hands of dying patients when their family could not be there, sometimes holding phones to help conversations happen.

His work during Covid led to a national university study by Edge Hill University which placed the spotlight on the important work of Hospital chaplains across the country during Covid and highlighted the importance of their role, not just in Southport but also in Hospitals across the country.

SOUTHPORT'S MP Patrick Hurley has called upon Northern Rail to take action to improve conditions and reliability on the Southport to Manchester line.

This follows Patrick's journey last week, where he live-tweeted the various issues faced when attempting to travel from Southport to Manchester city centre, sharing various constituents' complaints about the cost of travel, the length of the journey, and the likelihood of trains being cancelled.

Following the journey, Patrick has written to the Managing Director of Northern Rail, the Secretary of State for Transport, and the Mayor of Greater Manchester, sharing their experience.

In the letter to the Managing Director, Patrick wrote:- "It cost me £16.20 for an off peak return to Manchester, whilst an annual season ticket costs £3,356. For an employee receiving the national living wage of £25,397 a year, they would have to pay over 15% of their take home pay on travel, effectively blocking off the entry level opportunities in Manchester's growing and thriving digital, creative and media sector for people in Southport. On my journey, the lack of the basics that other trains have, like charging points for devices, meant I was unable to work during my journey, meaning that the length of the journey feels even longer and unproductive... More importantly, the temperature on the train was far too cold with no heating, which made a long journey even more uncomfortable and off-putting. This is not just my experience, I get emails almost every week from constituents telling me about their complaints about the trains on the line and why this influences them to continue to drive to the city instead. When more than 4.5% of services are cancelled across the North Manchester service group, with monitoring suggesting as worse as 6% of services cancelled on the Southport to Manchester line, and only 49% of services running on time, this is clearly another factor in putting people off using the train to commute or visit Manchester."

Welcoming recent measures to reduce the cost of travel, with rail fares being frozen for the first time in thirty years whilst wages rise, Patrick has called the current cost unjustifiable, given the service provided by Northern.

He has called on Northern to improve the condition of trains, introduce new rolling stock to the line, and work with partners to introduce a seven-day working agreement to bring reliability to Sunday services.

Patrick has also called on the government to continue their process of working with rail companies, like Northern, to create a Performance Restoration Framework, with five clear areas of focus to recover performance to acceptable levels, as well as displaying punctuality and cancellations at each station for the first time, as well as supporting companies to upgrade their rolling stock to make rail travel comfortable and a preferred option to driving.