Frodsham singer-songwriter, Charlie Reader, has been recognised in the Queen's Birthday Honours List 2020, for the work he has done raising funds for the NHS.

Charlie, who is only 24, was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM), which is granted in acknowledgement of outstanding civil or military service.

"At the start of lockdown I thought to myself: "what can I do to help out as a musician?" Charlie said.

"So I took to Facebook livestreams to play some tunes and keep the morale up whilst raising funds for the NHS.

"We raised around £1000 which really blew me away. I also managed to perform a few socially distant gigs to the neighbours from their front gardens; most memorably on VE Day in the sunshine!"

When the Queen's Birthday Honours List was released on Friday (9th October), Charlie said, "I received an email from the Cabinet Office informing me and at first thought it was a hoax!

"But after a bit of digging, I realised it was very much real!"

"It is a real honour to receive this award. Something I certainly never expected. You don't do these things to receive anything in return, so I'm really blown away.

"It must be said however that it was the togetherness and generosity of my local and online community that really made the difference."

Like his fund-raising work, Charlie's music career is going from strength to strength. He has released two singles, 'Morning Light' and 'Home', which are available on Spotify, Apple and Amazon Music.

In a Covid-free world, he also plays regular gigs across the North West, including Liverpool's Peaky Blinders bar, and will appear at next year's Tributes on the Hill festival.

Many congratulations to Charlie for this amazing achievement!

Follow Charlie on Facebook or visit his website to enjoy his live streamed performances and keep up to date with his latest releases.

You can also follow him on Twitter at @CReaderMusic