A fund originally set up to remember her son, formed the inspiration for alumna Cathleen Bromwich to leave a gift in her will and support a new generation of students at Nottingham’s School of Medicine.

Barrie Hayes-Gill, David Dewar, Cath Bromwich and Trevor Farren.

Cath Bromwich in 2013, pictured with Barrie Hayes-Gill (previous head of the Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering), David Dewar (one of the first recipients of the Michael Bromwich Award) and Trevor Farren from the Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering.

Cath, as she was better known, graduated in Chemistry from Nottingham in 1956 before becoming a teacher in her home county of Lancashire. Following the death of her son in 2012, Cath wanted to encourage others to share his passion for engineering and created the Michael Bromwich Award in his memory.

The prize is awarded to Nottingham undergraduates in the Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering and recognises the two highest achieving students at the end of the first, second and third years.

Students who received the awards were encouraged to write thank you letters to Cath, who would often recall her delight and pleasure at reading the accounts of current Nottingham students. She would even ‘ration’ herself to opening just one letter a day in order to spread the joy of hearing from students over a longer period.

It was very unfortunate to hear of Mrs Bromwich's recent passing, but it is great that her and her son’s legacy lives on through this prize.
Recipient of the Michael Bromwich Award

Speaking about the prize, one recipient in 2023 said: “When I was informed I was one of the recipients of the Michael Bromwich prize I was both incredibly excited and in complete disbelief. I just wanted to say thank you so much to Mrs Bromwich for making this possible, it was an honour to have received this reward and I hope to use it to further benefit my studies. It was very unfortunate to hear of Mrs Bromwich's recent passing, but it is great that her and her son’s legacy lives on through this prize.”

After Cath passed away in September 2022, she left a gift in her will to establish the Cath Bromwich Scholarships for Medicine. The scholarships will support School of Medicine students from lower income backgrounds who have faced barriers to their education.

“Widening access to Medicine is vitally important to ensure that future doctors are more representative of the population they will care for in the UK,” said Mandy Hampshire, Director of Admissions, School of Medicine, “However, enabling students from widening access backgrounds to fully participate in medical student life and successfully qualify as doctors is a challenge.

“Finances are a key issue for current medical students, especially during the clinical years of their training. The Cath Bromwich Scholarships for Medicine will provide much needed support and will make a real difference to the medical students who receive them.”

If Cath's story has inspired you to leave a gift in your will, you can find out more here.

The University of Nottingham is also delighted to be able to offer you a free will writing service, with our partner Octopus Legacy. You can make your will online today, over the phone or in person for free. See here for details.