In a glittering event hosted by ITV’s Ben McGrail at Canalside in Bridgwater, the awards showcased the amazing work of HiS’s Garden Competition winners, our invaluable Involved Customers, as well as the Young Hero of the Year, Unsung Hero of the Year, Community Impact Group of the Year, and overall Star of the Year.
Peter Hatch, CEO, said:
“Our first ever Star of the Year Awards was an inspirational evening which really highlighted the importance of community. All of our nominees were worthy winners and that made it so hard to choose the finalists. We feel so proud to have these incredible individuals in our Homes in Sedgemoor community and to know them all on a personal level.”
Taking the title award for 2022, John Hardy together with his guide dog Sidney were named Star of the Year and congratulated for their incredible efforts.
John was the prime mover in setting up The Hub at Bridgwater, which has become home to many of the town’s community groups and organisations. He helped to raise £35,000 to renovate a space within the Angel Place shopping centre, and John’s work with The Hub also helps support homeless people and those needing help moving into new accommodation.
A caring, compassionate and very knowledgeable individual, John works tirelessly to help those in need of support and guidance, to ensure no one is left feeling helpless or not knowing where to turn to get help.
Collecting his award John expressed his passion to be able to help absolutely anybody, regardless of their background or who they were.
Other winners included 13-year-old Brooke, who took away the Young Hero of the Year Award, for raising hundreds of pounds for health charities, through tea, coffee, cake and craft sales as well as tombolas and raffles. Collecting her award on stage, Brooke said she is now planning an event to raise funds for eating disorders charities.
Sydenham Improvement Group took the prize for the Community Group Impact Award, with their spokesman Lewis Hayes explaining that it was vital to engage young people early on.
As a local residents’ association, Sydenham Improvement Group has run, organised and supported a number of events and initiatives, including the local food pantry, a Christmas lunch for local families, tree planting, litter picks, community BBQs, a Jubilee street party, a Christmas Craft Fayre, and family teddy bear picnics.
The Unsung Hero Award went to Kat Redding. Kat was nominated by a neighbour after Kat moved in next door and helped with daily tasks while she was going through a personal crisis. Her neighbour stated: “There aren’t many who would do that for a total stranger. The little things mean a lot.”
The awards ceremony couldn’t have happened without our sponsors.
MD Group sponsored were our headline sponsor, and Steve Devlin, Executive Director of MD Group said:
“Thank you so much for such a fantastic evening. It was great listening to everyone’s stories, and I was truly humbled by the amazing work they are doing in their local community. It made me proud to be the main event sponsor and I would have no hesitation in supporting the Star Awards again next year.”
Category sponsors were Sedgemoor District Council and We are Resource. Envrotec, Envirocall and Bradfords were ceremony sponsors and Voicespace also offered their support.
Rounding up the awards evening, Chair of the Board Paul Stephenson, talked about the sense of community and the importance of “hope”.