Prison volunteer stunned by MBE

stephen knox - MBE

A FORMER Oldham College student who grew up in Clarksfield has been awarded an MBE for 15 years of voluntary service in prisons and immigration detention centres.

Stephen Knox, now of Hilcote, Derbyshire, was a member of the Independent Monitoring Board from 1999-2014. IMB members independently monitor the day-to-day life in local prisons or immigration holding centres.

Father-of-three Stephen (55) said: “I feel honoured. It’s not something I ever thought I would get in my lifetime. I felt humbled; it hasn’t quite sunk in yet.”

Stephen lived in Balfour Street and attended the former Counthill School. He moved to Lincolnshire at the age of 20. After a back injury forced him into early retirement, he kept active by volunteering with the IMB in Lincolnshire.

“I met different people with different experiences,” said Stephen. “I would love to be doing it again - in fact I’ve applied to re-join.”