Sue Laycock and Helen Barker are under orders to "dress to impress" at the upcoming Unsung Hero Awards in Manchester on March 1.

Sue is through to the finals after Helen, our Chief Operating Officer, nominated her  friend and PA and she beat off the competition to become one of three finalists in the Admin and Clerical Category. 

Their "fabulous working relationship and a great friendship" is at the heart of why we get on so well.

Helen told us more.

• What makes Sue standout as a PA and colleague

Well where do I start… firstly she manages me really well which is by no means an easy task!

She is very very organised

She makes time to understand how things work and most importantly who people are so she has the connections. In particular she has brought together a group of colleagues who would generally work in isolation within Divisions recognising the collective dependency and strength

• Describe her in three words.

Organised, helpful and funny

• Tell us more about your relationship 

Sue and I have worked together since 2013 as she was my PA in Bradford before we moved here (a fantastic move for both of us). We speak every morning, going through the diary and any tasks so we are both ready to start the day; we both love our jobs and take a lot of pride in what we do. She’s an early bird like me so by 6.45am we’ve sorted the diary, shared any information, laughed at any new jokes and generally put the world to rights.

• What makes you a good double act

We both live in Bradford and have a similar sense of humour so laughter is at the heart of our relationship closely followed by the fact that our husbands actually went to school together, so we have lots in common in and out of work. In fact they are coming with us to the award ceremony which is nothing to do with requiring a designated driver!!!

• How would you say Sue benefits our patients/helps provide Compassionate care?

Sue embodies our values and behaviours, she is very patient focussed ensuring I am focussed on the things that make a difference to staff and patients. The reason for my nomination of Sue was the way she took this further to support other colleagues through Work Together Get Results which has impacted positively on all those around her.

Sue admitted to being shocked at first. She said: " Upon receiving the initial confirmation that I had been nominated for this award, I was shocked.  Everything I do, I consider to be a part of my job.  However, having got over the initial shock and having re-read the nomination “several times”, I came to quite like the idea. 

"Helen and I have worked together for a number of years now. I am really touched that she nominated me for this award.  Regardless of the outcome on the night, the recognition through the nomination process means so much to me and makes me feel so valued in the role that I do."