ALMOST a decade at the helm of Swindon and Wiltshire Pride has seen one tireless volunteer named as a finalist in this year's Pride of Swindon Awards.

The judging panel of this year's awards were impressed to hear that Jo Sharpe was an "active and dedicated advocate of promoting inclusion and diversity which has benefitted Swindon over the past 10 years". She is now among a select few nominees who have made it through to the finals.

Jo, who marked her last pride in charge last year, was praised by her nominator as dedicating her "sheer force of personality" and a huge commitment of time to the pride cause. "As a consequence Swindon & Wiltshire Pride has increased the profile of Swindon as an inclusive town at a national level," they said.

"The Pride festival and parade are now an established even in Town Gardens each summer. They are marked out compared to other Pride festivals by being family friendly, open to all and not commercially orientated. It attracts in excess of 5000 people each year and has knock on benefits for local communities, retail and businesses, who identify it as a draw in attracting the best quality staff to work in Swindon.

"Alongside the festival, Jo oversees communication and fundraising events throughout the year. The council, police and fire service all identify significant benefits from her work in ensuring the Pride Festival continues to run.

"Jo has also voluntarily run Out of the Can a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth group since 2004. This creates a safe and supportive place for young people to respond to and understanding their identity and how to make sense of it in the wider world.

"Jo’s determination has kept Out of the Can running when other youth provision in Swindon has closed due to diminishing resources.

"In short Jo gives freely of her time and energy without reward to support and advocate for a marginalised community – without her Swindon’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered communities would experience greater marginalisation and discrimination."

Jo will have to wait until the awards ceremony at Steam on March 22 to find out whether she has won an award.