Student of the Year Finalists

Being named Student of the Year is the highest accolade you can receive from the University.
The Neil and Gina Smith Student Of The Year Award comprises a cash prize of £5,000 and recognises a student that has made outstanding achievements at Keele.

This year we have five students who are all worthy of winning the award, but who do you think should be victorious? Find out more about each candidate below.

Ryan Bloom

Ryan came to Keele as a ski racer on the Talented Athlete programme, but sadly a major ACL injury prevented him from pursuing a potential professional career in snowsports. He then joined the Snowsports Society, working his way up to become President, and was recently named Sportsperson of the Year at the AU Awards. Under his leadership, the first team has consistently qualified for the King’s National Finals, positioning Keele alongside leading universities.

The society has more than doubled in size over the last academic year and Ryan has been instrumental in shaping the club’s growth and competitive success. He has created an inclusive environment for members of all skill levels to engage, build friendships, and find a sense of belonging within the Keele community, and played a key role in developing first-time competitors, offering guidance and practical advice. This increase in participation has put the society in its strongest position to date and Ryan has created a solid foundation for future cohorts.

He has also led several charity fundraising initiatives, including working with our Oddballs ambassador on the ‘dip for donations’ scheme, manning a 24-hour spinathon with Movember ambassadors which raised more than £750, and contributing to Keele’s most successful Movember campaign post-Covid.

The Business Management and Data Science student has also maintained high performances across his studies and secured a graduate role at The Bank of New York.

Aliya Noor Ali

During her time at Keele, Aliya has balanced her studies in Biochemistry and Neuroscience alongside wide-ranging extracurricular and volunteering roles and the diagnosis of a chronic life-changing condition.

Aliya has used her illness as a catalyst to perform to the best of her ability and applied the insights it has given her to help improve the lives of others. She has taken part in research looking at health equity, exploring neurodegenerative disease in ethnic minority communities, and participated in hackathons addressing inequalities in cervical screening uptake. Her interest in health equity has also seen her learn Spanish to better engage with diverse patient populations.

Aliya has also completed an internship in Business Transformation at the General Medical Council where she contributed to a regulatory fairness review aimed at reducing bias in decision-making and strengthening regulations in patient safety.

Aliya has supported fellow students across academic, social, and pastoral contexts through her roles as a Student Ambassador, SU Hub Adviser, Resident Adviser, and Students’ Union Commercial Host. She has carried out welfare checks, supported students in crisis, organised initiatives to build a community within Halls of Residence, and provided guidance and signposting for students navigating challenges.

Ellie Waters-Barnes

Following a cancer diagnosis at 14 and undergoing 18 months of treatment, Ellie Waters-Barnes decided she wanted to pursue medicine and help other young people fighting cancer, creating YouTube videos to document her journey and sharing advice with other cancer sufferers.

Ellie actively raises awareness of childhood cancer and the realities of life after treatment, working with healthcare professionals and supporting charities and research initiatives in the field. She has spoken at conferences, on the news, and on campus to spread cancer awareness. This year marks 10 years since Ellie’s diagnosis, and she wanted to mark the occasion by spending the year fundraising. In February, Ellie raised more than £700 for the Alice’s Arc charity by running a ‘Take Me Out’ fundraiser that was held in the SU Ballroom on Valentine’s Day. She has also recently completed a half marathon to raise further funds.

Over the last four years, Ellie has also been part of the MedPath Society, working her way up to become President of the club. The student-led widening participation initiative supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds aspiring to work in healthcare and has supported more than 300 students. Ellie has delivered teaching sessions that introduce students to healthcare topics and raise awareness of careers across the sector. Ellie’s work has helped to reduce disparities in access to medicine and inspired the next generation of healthcare professionals.

Ellie has also led a team in organising and running the annual in-person mock Multiple Mini Interview circuits for Keele’s Steps2Medicine students. This involved her contacting schools across Staffordshire to promote the event and find participants, designing interview stations with standardised feedback, and arranging the venue, resources, and interviewers.

Lauren Keen

Removed from school at 15, estranged abroad at 16 with no legal guardian or contactable family, while experiencing poverty and domestic violence, Lauren worked three jobs to save up for a flight home to the UK.

On returning to Britain, Lauren contacted the only family members she had left, her uncle and his family, and began working as a healthcare assistant in a care home, enrolled on an NVQ Level 2 in Care, and was able to complete her GCSEs. She then came to Keele to study Biochemistry and Medicinal Chemistry but fell pregnant with her son during her foundation year. Determined to provide for her family, Lauren cared for her newborn while studying, working in NHS trauma care, and looking after her other child, yet still managed to increase her grades every year. In November, Lauren’s uncle passed away suddenly and she has also had to care for his children.

For the last two years, Lauren has volunteered at her local church, become the voluntary Safeguarding Officer for St Giles Parish Church and implemented its first Equality and Diversity Policy, and supported the congregation and Keele students on placement to feel safe, all alongside her studies, caring for her family, and working as a healthcare assistant.

Christina Pinto-Skeggs

After experiencing an assault in the final year of her A-levels, Christina was forced to withdraw from her course to receive treatment for Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. At the time, pursuing higher education seemed incredibly unlikely, but after engaging with one of Keele’s Open Days, she enrolled on our International Relations programme with an integrated foundation year.

Christina credits our supportive campus environment with allowing her to excel in her course and volunteering goals. In her second year, she began volunteering at the Glo Café at YMCA Cheshire supporting staff with customer service and training. She then joined in with the Starting Point initiative; a weekly social group for refugees and young unaccompanied asylum seekers.

Through her volunteer work, Christina identified a significant gap in disadvantaged and displaced youth accessing higher education, and after consulting Higher Horizons, she developed an Access to Higher Education project and designed a bespoke open day to try and improve access opportunities. In November, out of more than 100 branches, Christina won the Young Volunteer of the Year award at the YMCA England and Wales Youth Matters Awards.

Alongside friends and fellow International Relations students, Christina set up the Keele Model UN Society to give all students interested in foreign policy and international affairs the opportunity to engage with the society and it was nominated for the New Society of the Year award in 2024. Christina has also acted as the International Relations Student Voice Representative for the second and third year cohorts, engaging with other students and lecturers to provide feedback.