Lottery winner to keep job as she 'loves working in a care home'

A care worker, who won a £1m on the Lotto, has revealed she plans to keep her job as she “loves” working in a care home.

Patricia Aldridge, from Wexham, near Slough, won the money with her husband Robert, 57, on the Lotto draw on 9 December.

The 55-year-old, who even worked a 12 hour shift on Christmas Day, after her big win, said: "I have got no plans to give up work. I love what I do".

Patricia was on a break at work and signed into her National Lottery account to play EuroMillions and check the Lotto results when she saw a message telling her she’d won on a Lotto Lucky Dip. The mum of three said: “I was chuffed to see I’d won on a Lucky Dip but just underneath that message I spotted a slightly more exciting one which said I’d also won £1,000,000 on Lotto and to call Camelot. It’s certainly not your average Tuesday email.

“When I rang Robert I told him to pull over, there was nothing wrong but he needed to pull over. Thankfully he did promptly and I told him I’d won on a Lucky Dip to which he replied ‘why get me to pull over for that?’, which is when I then told him ‘I think I’ve also won £1,000,000.’ It was certainly one of our craziest conversations!”

Robert headed straight to Patricia’s work where she ran out to meet him and call Camelot from the car. Patricia said: “I was convinced it was a hoax so when the lady at the National Lottery Line confirmed I was a winner I couldn’t stop giggling, I just didn’t know what else to do. I can’t imagine what anyone who saw us must have thought as we were both sitting in the car giggling but it’s not every day you win £1,000,000.

“Once I’d composed myself I went back to work to finish my shift without telling anyone we’d just become millionaires.”

That evening Robert and Patricia told their three children who are all in their twenties, the good news.

The couple have had a few sad Christmases lately and so they “hope that this win heralds a new and happier season of joy”.

“We lost both my parents three months apart just before Christmas a few years ago so it’s been hard to celebrate, then last year we all decided we’d make an effort again only to lose my brother to heart failure on Christmas Eve,” said Patricia.

“If I’m honest, following our loss last Christmas I really was beginning to think we were cursed for Christmas, but it seems that maybe our luck has now turned. This win doesn’t bring our loved ones back but it does mean we can help out our nearest and dearest and that’s a Christmas gift anyone would want.”

She added: “Neither of us plan to give up work just yet but it’s nice knowing we have the security to take things easier when, and if, we need to.

“We’ll definitely look for a new home but to be honest, we’d already started to think about moving to a place with an annexe so Robert’s parents could live with us. This win just means that house and annexe could be a bit swankier than originally planned!”

They have however already bought a new car. “Just a few weeks ago we’d decided we needed to change our car, it’s 14 years old and things are starting to go wrong on it. Suddenly that rather considered decision can now take place without too much concern for the financing so we’ve already test driven and ordered a new Nissan X Trail which we should have by Friday.”

Her husband Robert described the win as “life-changing” and said: "We just know our children are secure now. That is the best thing about it.”

The couple have bought a ticket every week for the last 23 years.