A public health nurse who works for Cornwall Council has been awarded the prestigious title of Queen’s Nurse.

Sue Adams, who has been in the profession for 42 years, found out she had received the accolade while with her delighted 93-year-old dad.

They joked that she had come a long way from dressing up as a nurse and tucking in her teddies at night as a child.

Sue, who lives in Truro, is one of 587 nurses working in community specialisms who received the title this year.

Community nurses work outside of hospital settings in roles such as school nurses, health visitors, public health nurses and community mental health nurses.

Sue is the second council employee to become a Queen’s Nurse following in the footsteps of Jodie Pethick, who is head of the Best Start, Community Health and Wellbeing Service.

“I always wanted to be a nurse,” said Sue. “I had a nurse’s costume and I remember tucking my teddies and dollies into bed and taking their temperatures when I was little. I think it was in my blood and my mum always encouraged me too.

“I was with my dad when I received the email saying I’d been awarded the title of Queen’s Nurse. He was dead chuffed for me, really proud, and he said my mum would have been over the moon.”

She added: “I feel very happy about it. I’ve been doing this job for so long, it’s nice to get recognition like this and know I’ve hit that standard they’re looking for.”

The title of Queen’s Nurse is given to only the most dedicated and committed community nurses by the Queen’s Institute of Community Nursing (QICN).

Thought to be the oldest nursing charity in the world, QICN dates back to the time of Queen Victoria when it was founded to organise the training of district nurses.

On top of her years of service as a nurse, midwife, health visitor, school nurse and child safeguarding lead, it was the crucial role Sue played in setting up the Early Help Hub in Cornwall that impressed the QICN in her application.

The first of its kind in the country, the hub launched in 2015 to create a single point of access and triage for all children’s community health services, linking up council-run, NHS and other organisations.

Being a Queen’s Nurse gives those access to the Queen’s Nurse network – essentially a bank of expertise and knowledge – to which you are also expected to contribute, helping others to improve community health services across the country.

Sue, who is now the health lead at the MARU (multi-agency referral unit for child safeguarding), said: “You have to demonstrate that you work at an outstanding level, that you are compassionate and you can act as a role model for others. You have to be committed to delivering great care and be able to contribute to the Queen’s Nurse network.

“I feel I have a huge amount of learning to share from what we’ve achieved in Cornwall as we’re doing some great stuff here. We’re really quite far ahead and I’m immensely proud of the work we do here.

“I don’t want this title to be about me. We all stand on the shoulders of other amazing people we work with and it’s about them too.”

Cllr Hilary Frank, Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Schools at Cornwall Council, said: “Sue’s recognition as a Queen’s Nurse is personal and collective. It honours her dedication, and it shines a light on Cornwall’s trailblazing approach to early intervention. The Early Help Hub Sue helped create stands as proof that when support comes early, families can thrive.

“My warmest congratulations go to Sue on this well-deserved honour. Together with Jodie Pethick, Cornwall is fortunate to have two Queen’s Nurses whose work continues to inspire and lead the way.”