Lifetime Achievement Award for Director, David Mason - December 2011

Each year, the British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA) hosts a gala evening in London to celebrate the achievements of the healthcare industry, and to recognise specific individuals for their contribution to the industry. The BHTA is the country’s largest healthcare body, and divides the healthcare industry into several ‘sectors’. These sectors include the larger and more widely recognised mobility and rehabilitation sectors, but also includes a sector for Electronic Communication Assistive Technology (eCAT) of which Toby Churchill Ltd is a member. This year’s gala event was held in London on 1st December.

We are pleased to announce that David Mason was recognised by the eCAT section of the BHTA for his involvement in the Assistive Technology field for nearly 30 years. David received the highest honor possible – a BHTA “Award for Excellence”. The award is presented each year to someone who has made an ‘outstanding and inspirational’ contribution to the industry. Angela Rippon hosted the evening and managed to convey the outstanding contribution to our field that David has brought:

“David is a quiet self-effacing person, whose tireless work over a thirty year period has changed AAC for the benefit of all. Trained as an engineer, David established Cambridge Adaptive Communication in 1987. An early client was Stephen Hawking. As for many others, David gave speech to Stephen when his natural voice failed him. In June 2001, David joined Toby Churchill Ltd to supervise the R&D department that designed Lightwriters. When Toby sold the company in 2007, the new owner had no hesitation in appointing David as Managing Director. In this role, he has been of invaluable assistance to the owner, has had the enthusiastic support of his staff and has the respect of all in the AT industry. David has now moved to a non-executive role, in which his vision and blue sky thinking continues to benefit not only TCL, but academic partners and, most importantly, users.”

This award could not have been given to a more deserving individual in the AAC industry, and we are all incredibly proud to have David as a part of our team.