THOSE who have given Swindon a reason to be proud of itself were the toast of the town today.

The eighth annual Pride of Swindon Awards were held at STEAM on Thursday afternoon where 24 individuals and 12 teams who made the judges' shortlist had their moment in the spotlight.

The nominees and their guests were treated to a rousing performance from the Uplands School choir before the presentations began.

Each of the finalists received a certificate, which were presented by the Deputy Lieutenant of Wiltshire, Eric Walker, leader of Swindon Borough Council David Renard and Police and Crime Commissioner Angus Macpherson.

Presenting the certificates to the teams Lord Joel Joffe said: "I am enormously proud to be here today to present these certificates to the award winners. As I listen to to the citations I am overwhelmed with admiration for the award winners and those members of the Swindon community who have not received an award today who have made such an extraordinary contribution to the society of Swindon. I think we should be enormously proud of all of these people who make Swindon such a fine town."

Amongst this year's winners were people who had overcome adversity, battled to improve their communities and those who had put in a lifetime of volunteer work for the good of the town.

Couple Jo and John McCue were honoured for ten years of hard work in the kitchen at the Broadgreen Lunch Club after initially saying they would volunteer for three weeks while a permanent solution was found.

Christ Church's parish administrator Ailsa Palmer also received an award for putting in 23 years of service at the church, while Michael Blunsdon's volunteer work at Prospect Hospice and Great Western Hospital earned him an award.

"Dog whisperer" Ken Stronach was also presented with an award for his work with older people, bringing along his much-loved Pets As Therapy dog Big Merv who accompanies him on his visits.

Also among the winners this year was an award presented posthumously to former borough councillor Frank Richards who died in November 2015. During his retirement he had campaigned tirelessly for a community centre in Lawn, and was involved in overseeing the planning and construction of it once it was given the go ahead.

He was nominated by his grandson John Richards who said: "He spent many years pouring hours and passion into the community centre which he built for the community, and never with the want of recognition. He really has left behind a legacy for all the people of the Lawns for decades to come."

Tony Martin of the Zurich Community Trust also made a number of donations to charitable causes. Honouring award winner Phoebe Maddison who has devoted her life to tackling Type 1 Diabetes, £250 was presented to the charity JDRF.

£500 was presented to S.T.E.P. while £750 was awarded to Swindon Down's Syndrome Group.

The trust also presented £1,000 to Big Breakfast + to help them continue to put on hot breakfasts for homeless people.

Mayor of Swindon Andrew Bennett closed the ceremony and urged people to start thinking of worthy nominees for next year's awards. He said: "There are many more out there who deserve to be recognised for how much they do and how happily they do it. That humble offering makes the whole thing so very worthwhile."

 

The individual winners were:

Marie West.

Ailsa Palmer.

Gina Musty.

Phoebe Maddison.

Ricardo Defazio.

Ken Stronach.

Josie Williams.

Michelle Howard.

Penni Seviour.

Sue Lee.

Jo & John McCue.

Michael Blunsdon.

Frank Richards - posthumously.

Helen Steward.

John Maxwell.

 

The individuals who received a certificate were: 

Greta Davies.

Roger Trayhurn.

Phil Dean.

Waleed Ahmed.

Kevin Thompson.

Mina Bhogal.

Nicky Parker.

Ismail Usman.

 

The team winners were:

BIOS Youth Club Project.

Swindon Phoenix Rotary Club.

Swindon Down's Syndrome Group.

Swindon Mela.

Big Breakfast +.

Youth Offending Team volunteers.

 

The team certificate winners were:

Matt Holland and the Swindon Festival of Literature Team.

Coram Voice Independent Visitors.

Battle of Britain 75 Swindon Remembers Team.

S.T.E.P. Group Volunteers.

Swindon Calais Solidarity.