“The winners have demonstrated that innovation and perseverance can go a long way in making a positive impact on society”

Student mental health campaigner Imogen Arden-Jones has received a Vice-Chancellor’s Social Impact Award for her activism including encouraging more young people to be vaccinated against Covid-19. 

Imogen, a fifth-year medic at St John’s College, was among 15 Cambridge students recognised this year in celebration of exceptional contributions to society.

Imogen said: “For me, social action takes many forms – from making Instagram reels to demystify Oxbridge, to meeting MPs in parliament to campaign for better mental health services, to empowering young people to design a one-of-a-kind youth centre here in Cambridge. 

"I am absolutely thrilled to have been selected as a winner of the Vice-Chancellor's Social Impact Award.

Imogen is a trustee of YoungMinds, a national mental health charity, and is senior facilitator of Cambs Youth Panel. She has been volunteering for YoungMinds since she was 15, when she became the youngest member of the charity’s youth panel. Eight years later she is still a volunteer and on the Board of Trustees as a non-executive director.

Imogen said: “It is difficult to overstate the impact that this has had on my life. I have been able to use the challenges I have faced as a positive force for change.

“Social action has allowed me to find my voice, find my purpose and share that with others.”

Since being involved in YoungMinds, the charity has more than tripled in size and Imogen has been the trustee lead in the redesign of the Parents’ Helpline service. As a senior facilitator at Cambs Youth Panel, she also supports a group of 11-18-year-olds in tackling social issues and engaging in active citizenship.

Imogen co-led the youth panel’s six-month project to increase Covid-19 vaccine uptake in young people. The access campaign was a huge success and led to the group being awarded the BBC Cambridgeshire Make a Difference award.

More recently, the panel hosted a Winter Wonderland event in the Old Divinity School at St John’s. The free event, funded through donations, targeted disadvantaged communities through community groups. More than 600 guests attended and 300 gifts were distributed, with the remainder donated to Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust.

Imogen also uses social media to demystify life as a Cambridge medical student to more than 2,000 people under the handle @Imydoesmed. Outside of access work, she is a mental health advocate and using her own experiences of mental illness and adversity, she visits schools in the Cambridge area to share her story with young people.

She is one of five students honoured in the undergraduates category for their ‘exceptional work’ at The Vice-Chancellor’s Social Impact Awards ceremony on 4 May. The awards are organised by Cambridge Hub, a student-led group that offers practical volunteering, skilled placements, projects and events.

Dr Anthony Freeling, University of Cambridge Vice-Chancellor and Honorary Fellow of St John’s, said: “It’s wonderful to present these awards to the students, who have shown such commitment and dedication to social impact. 

“The winners have demonstrated that innovation and perseverance can go a long way in making a positive impact on society. Their accomplishments serve as an inspiration to us all.”

Yingxin Zhang, Cambridge Hub People and Activities Manager, said: “The Vice-Chancellor has kindly sponsored Cambridge Hub to organise the annual Vice-Chancellor’s Social Impact Awards since we started in 2019, to recognise and celebrate the achievements of exceptional University of Cambridge students who work towards making the world a better place.

“We were also delighted with the collaboration of our judging panel who took their time to embrace the difficult challenge of selecting this year’s winners, among so many students committed to social action.”

Published: 11/5/2023

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