THERE is one last chance to nominate an extraordinary volunteer for a royal award.
Warwickshire County Council (WCC) and the Warwickshire Lieutenancy are reminding residents there is just over a week to go to submit nominations for volunteering groups, charities, and social enterprises across the county whose exceptional efforts deserve to be recognised by The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (QAVS).
The deadline to submit nominations for the 2023 awards is Thursday (September 15).
The Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire, Tim Cox, recently met with members of Volunteer Friends to present the charity with their QAVS 2022, in recognition of their support to local people who have been struggling with social isolation or poor mental health. The charity, based in Nuneaton and Bedworth, provides community transport, friendship groups, carpentry workshops, a dementia choir, and helps with shopping.
Volunteer Friends is one of five voluntary and charitable organisations across Warwickshire that received a QAVS in 2022, with awards also announced for Harbury e-Wheels, Heart of England Forest, Kissing it Better, and The Pam Britton Trust for Dementia.
The volunteer work across these five charities covered a wide variety of causes from the environment and climate change to social care and dementia.
WCC spokesperson for heritage, culture and the environment, Coun Heather Timms, said: “The volunteers across Warwickshire have, and continue to, make an essential contribution to our local communities and support a variety of sectors, including protecting, preserving, and promoting our environment, providing for the elderly and supporting young people, or offering emotional and physical support to those in need.
“We would like to thank Warwickshire’s volunteers for their time and dedication in supporting this county and believe it’s important that their efforts and contributions are recognised. One great way to support this recognition is to nominate a group for The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.”
Originally set-up to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s Golden Jubilee, the QAVS is an annual award acknowledging the outstanding work delivered by volunteers who benefit their local communities and is the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK.
The award is presented each year on the June 2 to coincide with the anniversary of the Queen’s coronation. All awardees receive a certificate signed by the Queen, a domed glass crystal, and may also be invited to attend a royal garden party.
Any group of two or more people doing volunteering work can be nominated for the award. The majority of the group must be volunteers, and more than half the volunteers must have the right to live in the UK. Volunteer groups should have been running for three years or more to be nominated.
To nominate a volunteer group visit https://qavs.dcms.gov.uk/make-a-nomination/about-nominating/
