Five other notable figures from the fields of health, science, business and the arts are also to be honoured alongside students at the University’s graduation ceremonies in November.
Golfer Matt Fitzpatrick won the US Amateur at just 18-years-old. He turned professional in 2013 and won his first professional tournament, the British Masters, in 2015. In 2022, he won one of professional golf’s highest honours, the US Open, and has solidified his place as one of the best. He has also represented Europe in three Ryder Cup’s.
Matt said: “It is an honour to be presented with this award. I am proud to be recognised alongside leaders in education, business, entertainment and so many more.”
Niall Guite is a Special Olympics GB athlete who has represented Sheffield and Yorkshire in basketball and cycling. He won a gold medal for basketball at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles 2015 and competed in cycling at the World Games in Berlin 2023 winning a gold and silver medal. Niall has just been elected to the Special Olympics Regional Athlete Leadership Council 2024-27, ensuring that athletes voices are heard across its organisation.
In 2021 he started a social enterprise ‘Art with a Special Goal’ selling his original art depicting aerial views of stadiums. He has illustrated his first book, Ready Set Bubble, with the theme of equity in sport.
In the last year Niall has been recognised for his disability advocacy, winning numerous awards including Breaking Down Barriers Award at the Autism and Learning Disability Awards 2023, the Champion for Change Award at Variety's Disability Sports Awards 2024 and Disability Sport Yorkshire’s Sports Personality of the Year 2024.
Niall said: “I feel very proud to have been offered this award. I am happy to be sharing this moment with my family, friends, and community, to be recognised in this way is very special and as someone with a learning disability, I want this to be a message to everyone, that we all have a responsibility to help each other be the best we can possibly be.”
Other recipients of honorary awards include:
- Willie Williams designs and directs live events and concert tours and is best known for his work with the rock band U2, for whom he has been creative director since 1983. Sheffield-born Willie's work with other artists including George Michael, David Bowie and R.E.M., has also been highly respected as being both conceptually and technologically groundbreaking. He has designed for theatre in the West End and Broadway, most recently in the video design for Prima Facie, starring Jodie Comer, for which he won a New York Drama Desk award.
- Tony Mannix, a retail, supply chain and logistics expert and former CEO of Clipper Logistics, for outstanding contributions to business. Tony has been an Executive in Residence and a member of the Employer Advisory Board at Sheffield Business School since September 2023.
- Koen Timmers, a global education leader who is making a difference to climate education through schools and communities across the world. In 2017 he established the Climate Action Project to reform climate change curricula around the world. It has been endorsed by the Dalai Lama, Prince William and Sir David Attenborough.
- Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu is a Professor of Pharmaceutical Nanoscience at University College London and co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at Nanomerics Ltd, a UCL spin-out pharmaceutical company that seeks to create better medicines by enhancing and repurposing existing drugs. She has received various prizes for her work throughout her career.
- Dotty Watkins OBE is a midwife who has made an impact on the profession and region over a 40-year career. She was Nurse Director and Head of Midwifery at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals until 2016. In 2021 she was the recipient of a Gold Award from the Chief Midwifery Officer and in 2022 she was awarded an OBE, both for her services to midwifery.
Professor Liz Mossop, Vice-Chancellor of Sheffield Hallam University, said: “We are incredibly proud to announce this year’s honorary awards recipients. They embody the values of Sheffield Hallam University and have made outstanding contributions to society in their respective fields.
“All of this this year’s recipients already have strong links to Sheffield or the University and we know they will inspire our graduating students as they move to the next stage in their lives.
“We are very much looking forward into welcoming them to our community.”
