Best of Blaby District celebrated

 

 

Eight finalists honoured at fifteenth Outstanding Achievement Awards 

Blaby District Council’s fifteenth celebration to recognise individuals and groups from District of Blaby for their selfless work within their communities took place on Thursday 05 October.

Eight finalists and their families joined special guests and sponsors to enjoy the evening and honour the unsung heroes. BBC East Midlands Today’s Maurice Flynn hosted the ceremony.

Finalists included the inspirational 13-year-old Emma McCarron of Narborough, whose father is battling cancer, who took Young Achiever of the Year for her work raising over £5,000 for the charity Hope Against Cancer.

Thorpe Astley resident Michaela Garfield won Good Friend/Good Neighbour after being the backbone of her street, offering support and friendship to neighbours suffering illness and going through hard times for over 15 years.

Blaby Scout Leader Betty Saunders won Volunteer of the Year after serving her local scout group for 37 years, whilst Commbus took the title of Best Community Group/Achievement for their work in helping elderly and disabled residents maintain their independence through the voluntary transport service.

Councillor Terry Richardson, Leader of Blaby District Council, said: “I am so proud as leader to see us host these awards for the fifteenth consecutive year. The Judging Panel and I had an extremely hard task of whittling the 43 nominees down to the eight we saw honoured on the night.

“All of those nominated deserve praise for the selfless work they do in their local community. We know that thousands of volunteers are what make this dirstrict a great place to live.

“We would like to thank every person that has taken time to submit nominations and put forward their district heroes and I am consistently in awe of the incredible work we get to hear about.

“I want to congratulate all the finalists and to personally thank our sponsors who make this event possible.

Our awards are funded entirely through the incredibly generous sponsorship of businesses who contribute to the economic viability of our District”

Davidsons Homes are the main sponsors of the awards, along with category sponsors Fosse, Marriott Leicester, Ford and Slater and Countryside Properties.

Full list of winners and runners up:

  • Good Friend/Good Neighbour – Winner: Michaela Garfield (Thorpe Astley), Runner-up: Janet Chapman (Croft)
  • Volunteer of the Year – Winner: Betty Saunders (Blaby), Runner-up: Josie Sharp (Enderby)
  • Young Achiever of Year – Winner: Emma McCarron (Narborough), Runner-up: Jack Wheeler (Thorpe Astley)
  • Best Community Group/Community Achievement – Winner: Commbus Community Transport, Runner Up: Thurlaston Carnival Committee