A woman whose daughter died from leukaemia at the age of 23 has received a British Citizen Award in recognition of her efforts to improve hospital conditions for leukaemia patients.

Cambridge-based Sylvia Morris, 69, established the Karen Morris Memorial Trust in 1999 after Karen lost her battle with chronic myeloid leukaemia.

After her diagnosis, Karen had been involved in fundraising and fronted a campaign which inspired thousands to sign up for the bone marrow register.

The trust funds Karen's Homes from Home for leukaemia patients and families at Hammersmith Hospital, Churchill Hospital in Oxford, Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. "We set up the charity to continue the initiative that Karen had started," Mrs Morris explained. "It gave some meaning to our loss. If anyone had told me when we started that we would have raised almost £2 million in 16 years, I would not have believed them."

Karen was an RSY-Netzer leader. A piece of her writing features in the Reform movement's siddur.