Jennifer Young wins FHT 2020 Excellence Award for Tutor of the Year

“After a very challenging year of lockdowns, furlough and industry closure, we are especially honoured by this recognition. We look forward to continuing in our goal to make the spa and therapy industry inclusive and safe for cancer patients.”

A huge congratulations to one of our great friends, Jennifer Young, and her team, as last week the Federation of Holistic Therapists (FHT) announced the winners of the 2020 FHT Excellence Awards, naming Jennifer Tutor of the Year. The award was in recognition of a free accredited infection control course she developed to support professional therapists returning to work after the first lockdown.

The journey to making the spa industry more accessible for cancer patients has hinged on therapist training, knowledge and understanding of products and therapy techniques as well as cancer treatments, stages, symptoms and side effects, and Jennifer Young has very much been at the forefront of that process.

Jennifer Young began developing treatment protocols and providing comprehensive and insurable training for therapists, beauticians and care givers in 2013, when her local NHS hospital asked her to work with them and create specialist skincare and cosmetics for those going through treatment. Today she is the author of 16 accredited oncology touch therapy qualifications. She continues to champion the needs of cancer patients, enable therapists to provide safe and complementary effective therapies, and respond to the evolving needs of the market.

The Covid-19 pandemic saw the need for support for cancer patients rise to even greater heights, with more barriers in place for complementary therapies due to the risk of cross infection. Jennifer Young and her team acted fast, developing the online Control of Cross Infection in a Post-Covid World course. It drew on her expertise as a former inspector for HSE (Health and Safety Executive), international consultant, specialist skincare product developer and accredited training provider, to create an online course to support professional therapists and their clients, through the pandemic.

The user-friendly course was made available free of charge due to the turbulent nature of this year’s events. Although professional therapists are always trained in health and safety and hygienic practice, this course help them understand the virus in detail and walked them through how to create a risk matrix and prioritise appropriate actions when returning to practice. It has been accessed by more than 5,600 therapists to date.

In addition, and mindful that the UK anticipates a rise in diagnoses following delays to diagnosis and treatment caused by lockdown, Jennifer also launched a second free course for therapists. Jennifer Young’s Cancer Awareness course gives therapists and health practitioners an introduction and a strong foundation on which they can support clients with or recovering from cancer. It has been accessed by more than 2,500 therapists to date. This is in addition to a range of accredited and certified oncology massage and treatment courses, designed to help make the spa and beauty industry more inclusive. All training has been made available online and is structured so that it can be completed at a practitioner’s own pace.

Due to COVID-19, this year’s celebrations had to be conducted remotely, as part of a special. Jennifer Young was named alongside other respected finalists in the same category including Caroline Bradley, Marie Duggan and Dawn Morse - wonderful ladies who have achieved significant things in the past year.

“After a very challenging year of lockdowns, furlough and industry closure, we are especially honoured by this recognition. We look forward to continuing in our goal to make the spa and therapy industry inclusive and safe for cancer patients. In the work that we do, we are constantly reminded of the care that therapists have for what they do, and how important their work is for our health and wellbeing. It is testament to individuals that they want to deliver the best and most meaningful care possible, especially when clients are going through a hard time. Our training is designed to further enable them to do that safely and in a personalised way, ensuring that clients get the most out of their treatments, whilst at the same time protecting spa therapists and allowing them to feel confident in the work that they do and love.”

Jennifer Young

“The FHT Excellence Awards are designed to recognise individuals who are excelling in therapy practice and education and are an inspiration to others. Jennifer’s generosity has allowed literally thousands of therapists to access in-depth, reliable information and expert advice about infection control online, to help them return to providing much-needed treatments to their clients with confidence. I hope she is very proud to have been selected from a pool of high-calibre peers in awards that are recognised across the industry. Many congratulations, Jennifer, and thank you for supporting so many FHT members and other therapists at this difficult time.”

Christopher Byrne, President of the FHT