Irene Reid, MBE (born 1940 or 1941) is a British lollipop lady who, in 2017, was declared the UK's longest-serving lollipop lady.[1]
Reid works as a lollipop lady in Longridge, Ribble Valley,[2] covering the Longridge Church of England Primary School crossing on Berry Lane.[3] In 2003, she was awarded the Golden Jubilee Lollipop Person of the year.[4] In 2012, she was declared the longest-serving lollipop lady in Lancashire[5] and was awarded an MBE by Elizabeth II for her services to road safety.[6][5] In 2017, it was estimated Reid had ferried pupils across the road 1.3 million times.[7]
In June 2024, Reid received a special award from Lancashire County Council for her 55 years of service. She told the BBC: ""I've done this job for so long really because of the people in Longridge. They are so nice, they're all behind me."[8]
Reid has been outspoken about crossing safety for children, openly criticising plans by Lancashire County Council in 2014 to reduce funding for crossing patrols.[9] Reid also worked with the Longridge Youth and Community Centre for a decade.[10] In mid 2024, she was aged 84 and a great-grandmother of 10.[8] Reid is in a relationship with Hawklords musician Harvey Bainbridge.[1] She appeared on the British television game show Blankety Blank in 2021.[11]
References
- ^ a b Finch, Fiona (13 March 2019). "Irene's 50 fabulous years as Lancashire's Mrs Lollipop". Lancashire Post. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Faulkner, Paul (1 Nov 2021). "Bradley Walsh as host persuades Longridge lollipop lady of 53 years to go on Blankety Blank". Lancashire Post.
- ^ "Lollipop lady to open Longridge Does Christmas". Lancashire Evening Post. November 29, 2019 – via Gale OneFile.
- ^ "Help lick our lollipop crisis". Lancashire Evening Post. January 9, 2006 – via Gale OneFile.
- ^ a b "MBE honour for Longridge lollipop lady Irene Reid". BBC News. 2011-12-31. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
- ^ "Queen Elizabeth II meeting was 'like two nans nattering'". BBC News. 2022-09-12. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
- ^ "Meet the lollipop lady who has spent five decades helping Longridge pupils". Blog Preston. 20 October 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "Lollipop lady's 55-year career honoured by council". BBC. 14 June 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Crossing patrol plan will 'put young lives at risk'". Lancashire Evening Post. February 28, 2014 – via Gale OneFile.
- ^ Duggan, Claran (October 11, 2017). "Irene's still top of the lollipops for children". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
- ^ Macpherson, Jon (November 2, 2021). "Longridge lollipop lady stuns Blankety Blank host Bradley Walsh when sharing her age". LancsLive. Retrieved December 16, 2022.