Mel B: Honorary doctorate as massive an achievement as playing Wembley

Singer Melanie Brown has said being awarded an honorary doctorate is “as massive an achievement as performing at Wembley Stadium with the Spice Girls”.

During a ceremony at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on Monday, Brown, also known as Mel B and Scary Spice, accepted the award recognising her campaigning efforts for domestic abuse victims.

The 49-year-old wore a red, blue and yellow robe with a leopardprint lining to the event, held by Leeds Beckett University, in a nod to her days spent in the girl group – where she was known for sporting animal prints.

“Being awarded this honorary degree from Leeds Beckett University has been life-changing,” she said.

“I didn’t just want to accept an award. I wanted to be accepted as a student at Leeds Beckett. Not only have I been awarded this degree, but I was also accepted as a student on the Trauma Informed Care course which has been a huge step for me in so many ways.

“I am proud to feel part of this university in my home town, proud to have come here as Melanie Brown, proud to have worked alongside other students and received excellent guidance from the teaching staff.”

Brown said that becoming a student was “terrifying” but added that it had “changed” her life.

She said: “In my life I have been to many, many places and done many extraordinary things, but being here today as a graduate of Leeds Beckett University is honestly as massive an achievement as performing at Wembley Stadium with the Spice Girls.

“To understand yourself you have to understand the world around you. To understand what has happened to you, you need to understand the impact it has had. I wanted to understand. I wanted to learn. Leeds Beckett gave me that opportunity, that gift.

“Walking through those doors as a student was probably one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever done but it’s changed my life. And, just so you know, I passed my exams.

“I want to thank everyone here. I stand in front of you as Melanie Brown, daughter of an immigrant, who has learned to value British education in exactly the same way as her father. My degree certificate is going straight in a frame on my wall alongside my student pass.”

The university’s vice chancellor, Peter Slee, said Brown was “exactly the type of citizen we are here to champion”.

He said: “On behalf of all our students, colleagues and governors here at Leeds Beckett University, I would like to congratulate Melanie Brown MBE on this honorary degree.

“As a child of this city who reached the top of her industry and then used her platform to advocate for those who shared her hardships, Melanie is exactly the type of citizen we are here to champion.

“This year, she joins over 2,300 graduates from the School of Health, equipping a generation of professionals to meet the healthcare challenges of the nation both now and into the future.”

Brown was made a patron of Women’s Aid in 2018 and has been invited to speak in Parliament about domestic abuse.

In 2022 she was made an Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her service to survivors and this year she added a further three chapters to her memoir, Brutally Honest, focusing on overcoming the trauma of abuse.

Brown made claims in her book that she had suffered abuse from her ex-husband Stephen Belafonte – allegations he has repeatedly denied.