A KIND-hearted man who has worked tirelessly to improve youth services in Berkshire has received an MBE from the Queen.

Raymond Tapken from Reading felt "very surprised" when he received his letter in the post to say he has been given royal recognition in the New Year's Honours list 2020 for his service to young people.

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Mr Tapken, who is a secretary of the Montgomery Holloway Music Trust, has also been a Trustee of the Berkshire Community Foundation and is estimated to have raised nearly £1 million all by himself.

He said: "I am over the moon and feel very pleased and very surprised to have received this honour as it is something you don't think about when you're in the voluntary sector.

"You're not in the voluntary sector because of awards, it is because you want to help people. The hundreds of volunteers who run the youth groups deserve the recognition as most organisations would not exist without dedicated volunteers."

An MBE is an abbreviation for 'Member of the Order of the British Empire' which is a British honour that is awarded to a person by the King or Queen or member of the Royal family.

The 78-year-old explained that he started his voluntary work when he was a little boy at the age of 11 and at the age of 15, took over as leader after his youth leader had an accident.

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His proudest achievement was building up the second largest youth group outside London by overseeing the merger of different groups to create Berkshire Youth, which secured the 78 year legacy that the organisation maintains.

However, Ray explained that youth services are not what they used to be, despite his lifetime of achievements and contributions in the sector.

He added: "We need to keep youth services going. I think sadly there is very little local authority youth services and it is not what it used to be. Most of the work now takes place in village halls by unpaid volunteers.

"Youth groups gives them somewhere to meet with friends and it encourages them to participate in a activity and learn social skills."

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Mr Tapken has also raised small pots of money for smaller projects such as equipment in the YMCA Community Cafe, pre-school, sports halls and workshop.

He has raised funds to support apprenticeship programmes, with the result being that YMCA have had a number of very successful apprentices, including one who is now a very valued member of staff.

Ray jokingly said how he couldn't keep it a secret from his wife about receiving the New Year's Honour and thanks his sponsor's for their support.

He was among several others from the county who were awarded in the New Year's Honours list 2020, including Professor of Climate Science at the University of Reading, Edward Hawkins, who was honoured with an MBE for services to Climate Science and Science Communication.

Managing director of Fleximobility and Secretary General of the Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle Converters' Association Linda Ling, from Newbury, was also awarded an MBE in the honours list for services to people with disabilities.

Chief Executive Officer of Sustainable Energy Associationities Lesley Rudd, from Wokingham, was honoured with a British Empire Medal for services to UK Energy Markets and Clean Growth.