Our Members - Their Stories
King’s Birthday Honours for two CP Society members
25 Sep 2025
Congratulations to Cerebral Palsy Society members Allison Franklin and Allyson Hamblett who were both named as recipients of a King’s Birthday Honour in June.
Allison had her investiture ceremony in Wellington on September 17, where she was named a Member of The New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to people with disabilities.
Allyson received the King’s Service Medal (KSM) for services to people with disabilities and the transgender community at a ceremony in Auckland on October 3.
These awards are very well deserved. Both Allison and Allyson have been heavily involved in their communities, and we are proud to call them members of the Cerebral Palsy Society.
Allison Franklin
Member of The New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to people with disabilities.
Allison Franklin, left, pictured with Dame Cindy Kiro the Governor-General of New Zealand,
at her investiture ceremony at Government House in Wellington on September 17.
Photo: Doug Mountain Photography
Citation:
Ms Allison Franklin has been a long-term advocate for the disabled community.
Ms Franklin’s lifetime of advocacy has focused on policy changes to support people with disabilities and advice for public and community organisations on the need for inclusivity and diversity.
She has regularly spoken to schools and community groups about disability awareness and represented the disabled community through many forums including the Cerebral Palsy Society of New Zealand’s Executive Board, Christchurch City Council’s Disability Advisory Group and the Christchurch Community House Trust.
As a Member of Meridian Energy Christchurch’s Consumer Advisory Panel, her interventions led the company to collaborate with the Deaf Association to develop a protocol enabling hearing-impaired clients to access services through third parties without breaching provisions of the Privacy Act.
She served a term as the National Vice President of the Disabled Persons Assembly and represented New Zealand through its delegation to the World Congress of Rehabilitation International in Kenya.
Ms Franklin received the Roy McKenzie Foundation Travel Award in 1989, the Christchurch City Council Civic Award for Services to the Community in 2005 and a Local Hero Award in 2010.
Allyson Hamblett
The King’s Service Medal (KSM) for services to people with disabilities and the transgender community.
Allyson Hamblett, right, pictured with Dame Cindy Kiro the Governor-General of New Zealand, at her investiture ceremony in Auckland on October 3.
Citation:
Ms Allyson Hamblett has been involved with CCS Disability Action for more than 20 years across several roles.
Ms Hamblett is a Life Member of the Auckland branch of CCS, having served on the Local Advisory Committee from 2010 and as Chair since 2011.
She was a governance committee member with PHAB from 1983 to 2013, an organisation bringing together physically disabled people with non-disabled young people.
Through the Auckland Pride Centre she established a transgender support group that ran from 1995 to 2005, a forerunner to Genderbridge established in 2000.
She has campaigned for gender recognition in New Zealand legislation, particularly in the Human Rights Act and Citizenship Act and has written the books ‘A Life Lived Twice’ (2017) and ‘Love God Love Your Neighbour and its OK to be Trans’ (2019).
She has been involved with Māpura Studio since 2002, which provides creative programmes to marginalised and diverse peoples, as one of their original artists.
Ms Hamblett has exhibited with the studio, supported other artists, undertaken paid administrative work to manage website and social media content, and is now Disability Advisor for Māpura Studios.
* Allyson recently appeared on The D*List’s podcast. You can listen here.
The full list of citations can be found here.
