'Proud and humbled' to be appointed the MBE

At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Mr Bhanot co-ordinated 3,000 lunches a week for NHS staff, homeless people and those self-isolating and on their own.

But he is proudest of his campaign to encourage more black and minority ethnic groups to donate blood and sign up to donate organs and learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

"My mother almost died in pregnancy with my sister but for a blood donation from a stranger, and I wanted to repay that single act of kindness," he said.

"I was born in Kenya and have malaria antibodies, so I cannot give blood myself."

In 2017, Mr Bhanot co-founded Make It Beat, a charity that provides free CPR training in four South Asian languages, and led the nationwide Jain Hindu Organ Donorship Drive, which helped boost numbers of blood donors in minority groups in Essex and east London.

"The biggest challenge of Covid-19 has been not being able to physically get people together, but I believe it has made communities stronger, neighbours getting to know each other, charities working together towards one goal," he said.

"We have to break down barriers of fear. There has to be a cultural shift.

"I never expected this kind of recognition after 19 years of community work - it is a privilege.

"But it is collective. It is for all those volunteers who work day in and day out to help others."

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