The King and Prime Minister have led tributes to the Daily Mirror’s Pride of Britain Award winners, saying they represent the “very best of us” and “everything that is great about Britain”.

In a letter to the King’s Trust Young Achiever winner Molly Leonard, who runs craft workshops to help people with their mental wellbeing, Charles called all of the 2024 winners the “very best of us”.

Sir Keir Starmer told winners “Britain is proud of you” and that they “embody everything that is great about Britain”.

Among those being celebrated at an awards dinner in London on Monday is the first above-the-knee double-amputee to summit Mount Everest, and an RNLI lifeboatman who has rescued hundreds of people.

A doctor who invented the world’s first insulin pen, a mother who saved a man and 10-year-old boy who had been dragged out to sea, and three infected blood scandal campaigners have also been honoured.

Charles wrote: “On this 25th anniversary of the Pride of Britain Awards, I send my warmest admiration to all of this year’s winners.

“You each represent the very best in our society.”

The Prime Minister said: “For a quarter of a century, the Pride of Britain awards have celebrated the people who embody everything that is great about Britain.

“These are people from all walks of life, but they all have one thing in common. They’re heroes.

“They may not be the cape-wearing superheroes we normally think of – in fact, they look just like the rest of us.

“But they do have something that makes them very special indeed. Bravery, determination, generosity, empathy and huge spirit.

“They have the power to touch our hearts, to make us hopeful, to make us proud.

“They’re a testament to the incredible things people can achieve even in the face of hardship.”

The Pride of Britain has been collaborating with The King’s Trust, a charity that targets people aged 11 to 30 and helps them with life skills and access to work opportunities, since 2001.

The King first attended the Pride of Britain awards ceremony in 2012, where he paid tribute to the achievements of Team GB at the Olympics and presented long-distance runner Sir Mo Farah with an award.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the awards.

Those previously honoured include Post Office campaigner Sir Alan Bates, Amnesty International founder Peter Benenson, the Grenfell Community and firefighters, and Professor Sarah Gilbert and her team in Oxford for their work developing the Covid-19 vaccines.

Monday’s celebration at Grosvenor House will be hosted by TV presenter Carol Vorderman and dancer Ashley Banjo.