Garreth and Nicola Wood receive MBEs at Windsor Castle

Kids Operating Room's co-founders, Garreth Wood and Nicola Wood, have both today been awarded MBEs for their services to children’s surgery and charity, recognising the work behind Kids Operating Room.

They received the honour from The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, at an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday 18 February 2026. During the ceremony, she described their work as “inspiring”.

Garreth and Nicola founded Kids Operating Room in 2018 and since then, together with our partners and supporters, have helped establish more than 120 dedicated paediatric operating rooms in over 30 countries.

Speaking after the ceremony, Nicola said the recognition reflected the people and places behind the work.

“It’s really quite special to think that someone who is royal knows about the work that we do and finds it inspiring. But this is about so much more than us. It’s about the hospitals we work with, the surgeons and nurses on the ground, and the children whose lives are changed because they can finally get the care they need.”

Garreth said the award was encouraging, but also a reminder of why the work matters.

“We live in a world where children are still dying from surgically treatable conditions that we take for granted in this country. Around 1.7 billion children can’t access safe surgery when they need it. That’s unacceptable - and that’s why we started this. Hearing that our work is seen as inspiring is humbling, but it just makes us more determined to keep going.”

For Garreth and Nicola, the moment at Windsor Castle was not an endpoint - it was recognition of a shared mission that continues every day in hospitals around the world.

“Every operating room represents thousands of children who now have a chance they didn’t have before,” Nicola said. “That’s what really matters.”