CORNWALL Air Ambulance has been shortlisted for a raft of national awards.

The charity based at Trevithick Downs has nominees in the running for campaign of the year, charity team of the year and the lifetime achievement award at the 2025 Air Ambulances UK Awards of Excellence.

The annual ceremony recognises and celebrates the lifesaving work of air ambulance charities across the country, and the individuals who work tirelessly to help their local communities.

Cornwall Air Ambulance has been nominated in the campaign of the year category for its Sing it Home appeal.

The Sing it Home album reached number 11 in the UK official album download charts, which was a first for an air ambulance charity beating the likes of Coldplay and remaining in the top 20 for two weeks.

More than 500 local performers participated on the album, including one of the charity’s own Critical Care Paramedics and a former patient.

Local schools were challenged to create their own performances of the title track via a radio competition and the campaign exceeded one million interactions digitally in total, including through a music video and with the title track being used for the charity’s Christmas animation.

Cornwall Air Ambulance has also been shortlisted for the charity team of the year having raised more than £7.5 million as part of its annual target, but also an additional £2.85million for the Heli2 Appeal.

The 18-month long appeal included a Heli2 Heroes initiative, which offered supporters the chance to have their name on the aircraft, sold out at 1,200 places. The ‘Stepping Out to save lives’ campaign sold over 30 steps to businesses as part of a sponsorship deal. The in-memory giving journey was completely redesigned and integrated into the website, resulting in higher engagement and increased donations.

Legacy income also rose, aided by improved visibility of the charity’s brand in funeral directors and solicitor offices. They also refined the supporter experience with higher-end, emotionally resonant materials.

Mick McLachlan, who has been at the forefront of clinical development at Cornwall Air Ambulance since becoming one of the charity’s first full-time paramedics in 2006, has been nominated for a lifetime achievement award.

His advanced knowledge and skillset have benefitted thousands of patients over the past 18 years. He became one of the first to advance into becoming a specialist paramedic in critical care, identified the need for a 19-hour a day service, has played key roles in transferring to different models of aircraft and new air operations providers as well as developing in-depth data reporting to help advise and inform operational recommendations to influence the charity’s strategic vision. He was also part of the team who delivered the charity’s first pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia on scene.

Mr McLachlan is the longest serving full time critical care paramedic in Cornwall Air Ambulance’s history. He also holds the record for the most missions attended, which is more than 4,600, 4,200 of those being by air.

The winners will be announced at an awards evening in Telford on December 3.

Tim Bunting, chief executive at Cornwall Air Ambulance, said: “The past year has been an incredibly busy time for your charity, with the success of the Heli2 Appeal and delivery of your second lifesaving helicopter. The dedication and hard work behind the scenes to make that a reality has been phenomenal. To now be shortlisted in three categories at this year’s AAUK Awards of Excellence is a remarkable achievement, recognising the continued commitment of all to make Cornwall Air Ambulance the very best that it can be.”