Scholarship ‘changed my life’ says nursing graduate who lost husband
Gloria Ludlow, who was awarded a first class honours in BSc Adult Nursing, despite losing her husband part way through her studies, has become a nurse in the NHS.
Ms Ludlow was the recipient of a sanctuary scholarship from the University of Bradford and took up what she described as her “dream job” as an NHS nurse in February.
“It all happened so quickly and to be honest I don’t know how I managed to get through that”
Gloria Ludlow
The scholarship, designed to make it easier for asylum seekers and refugees to enter higher education, is worth a full fee and £4,000 towards study costs.
The university noted that, even before she arrived in the UK in 2002, Ms Ludlow had already endured significant hardship, losing her father, brother and sister to illness in her native Zimbabwe.
Once in the UK, she became the victim of modern slavery and, for around 16 years, was forced to work for little or no money by a number of unscrupulous firms, she decided “enough was enough”.
She said she heard about the sanctuary scholarship through the Manuel Bravo Project, which provides free legal representation to asylum seekers and refugees who cannot get legal aid, and decided to apply.
She said: “I remember contacting the university and I just told them my story. I was really nervous. When I got the phone call telling me my application had been accepted, I was on my way home – and I think I screamed the bus down.”
Four years on, she described it as one of the best decisions she ever made and has joined St James’s Hospital, which is part of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in Yorkshire.
However, despite her gaining a university place, Ms Ludlow was to endure further hardship – her husband, James Ludlow, whom she married in 2020, died of cancer in February 2023 aged just 35.
She said: “It was a very difficult time. Suddenly, the person who had been supporting me through everything, the person I loved, was no longer there. It all happened so quickly and to be honest I don’t know how I managed to get through that.”
She added: “I was a little bit afraid of entering higher education. I was a mature student and not from this country. But Bradford has given me lots of support… all of my lecturers helped me so much.
“Some days I felt like I couldn’t do it. Going to university was something I always desired. When I was living and working in Birmingham, I used to sit and watch students and I so wanted to be like them.
“Being here now, today, being able to work in the UK as a nurse for the NHS, is a dream come true. I am even thinking of buying my own home,” she said.
Bradford vice-chancellor Professor Shirley Congdon said: “Gloria’s story is humbling and inspirational. I am delighted we have been a part of her journey, and that we have helped her overcome obstacles that might otherwise have prevented her from realising her true potential.
“At the University of Bradford, we are committed to making a difference and Gloria is living proof that we are making that happen,” she added.
