FOUR dedicated volunteers from south Warwickshire have received Coronation Champion Awards.
Bradley Thomas, Kyra Barboutis, Sophie Smith and Anna Prosser are among just 500 individuals from across the country to receive the award for their exceptional volunteer work.
The awards are being handed out during the Coronation year and there were thousands of entries.
Bradley Thomas from Stratford impressed the judges with his dedicated volunteer work helping different groups of vulnerable or disadvantaged people in south Warwickshire.
Bradley organises activities for the elderly residents at Cherry Trees Residential Home in Alcester, chatting to them and listening to their stories. He also volunteers for SPARK Youth Music in Stratford on a project to give refugees access to musical instruments and has just started volunteering at the rehabilitation centre in Leamington to support people who have brain injuries.
Bradley said:”I am truly humbled and honoured to receive this award. Volunteering is a big passion of mine, and I am grateful for the opportunity to make a positive difference in my community. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me along the way, especially the lovely staff and people I have met through Cherry Trees Residential Home and Spark Youth Music.”
School girls Kyra Barboutis and Sophie Smith, also from Stratford, made national news for their efforts saving hedgehogs.
The pair, who are cousins, were just nine-years-old when they began their crusade to champion the declining hedgehog population, writing to their neighbours to ask them to build ‘hedgehog highways’ in their gardens.
They have gone on to set up their own ‘hogspital’ for poorly hedgehogs – nursing them back to health before releasing them back into the wild. Kyra and Sophie also founded their own organisation ‘Hedgehog Friendly Town’ and famously took on house builder Taylor Wimpey, convincing them to make their netting more animal-friendly.
No strangers to awards, in 2019 the girls won the Animal Hero Award and they have also been named ambassadors for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
They said: “Everyone can make a difference. We started when we were nine-years-old, just writing letters to our neighbours asking them to put a hole in the fence. Just little things like that can make a huge difference and everyone can do it.”
Anna Prosser, from Southam, is a dedicated volunteer for Dogs for Good, a charity that provides assistance dogs to individuals with disabilities, including those with autism and dementia.
Anna’s passion for working with dogs and supporting people led her to become a Chair of the Dogs for Good Warwickshire and Coventry Supporters Group, and a Voluntary Speaker for the charity. In addition, Anna also temporarily boards puppies and dogs for the charity.
The Coronation Champion volunteers will also have the opportunity to attend an official Coronation celebration such as the Windsor Castle Coronation Concert or a Coronation Garden Party.
To view the full list of Coronation Champions, visit www.royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk/media/tlzmaomq/coronation_champions_270423.pdf
