In News

Each year we welcome supporters from across the county to our Annual Supporters Reception, where we celebrate the work of the not-for-profit organisations, charities and community groups we’ve funded throughout the year.

Sadly the COVID-19 restrictions in place this year have meant that we cannot hold the event, but we’re excited to still be running our competition to award a local group with The People’s Choice Award 2020 and £500 prize funding. This year we’re also introducing a new award, The Coronavirus Community Award, to honour the great work of local groups during a very difficult time and award them with £500 prize funding.

 

Vote for The People’s Choice Award 2020

The winner of The People’s Choice Award 2020 is a group whose work in the community and impact on the local area makes Bucks a better place to live.

The nominees are as follows. To find out more about these organisations, click on their logo.

       

 

 

SORRY, THE VOTE IS NOW CLOSED

 

Vote for The Coronavirus Community Award

The winner of The Coronavirus Community Award is a group who have adapted to the pandemic to support isolated, underprivileged and vulnerable people in our community at this very uncertain time.

The nominees and their coronavirus projects are as follows.

 

The Bernwode Community Bus is a vehicle used to provide transport to vulnerable people in the community. With the outbreak of COVID-19, it has been transformed into ‘Bernie the Bus’: a bus that collects food donations and spreads joy to isolated and vulnerable local residents. With Bernie, a group of volunteers have been collecting food donations for the Aylesbury Vineyard Storehouse Food Bank and delivering plants to elderly and socially isolated residents – all while playing party music out of the back of the bus.

 

Buckinghamshire Disability Service, run by disabled people, were acutely aware that many disabled and vulnerable people were unsure how to access information on protecting themselves during the pandemic. They tripled their volunteer team to over 50 individuals to provide targeted advice and information and started several new projects to help disabled people through COVID-19, including a professional accessible befriending scheme for isolated disabled people (the BuDS BuDDies) and a scheme to support 200+ autistic and learning-disabled people who may find social distancing more difficult.

 

Buckinghamshire Mind adapted their services to provide online mental health support when all in-person services were forced to stop. They ‘reimagined’ several of their services to ensure a remote option was available to people struggling with their mental health, from their befriending service, to employment support, to counselling for all ages. The support took the form of phone and video calls, social media groups and even YouTube group activity videos.

 

One Can Trust Food Bank distribute emergency food parcels to people in South Buckinghamshire in crisis. They recruited a new team of volunteers and made fundamental changes to their distribution methods in order to handle the increased reliance on their service from people impacted by COVID-19, as well as packing larger parcels that include soap and sanitisers and more food for families with school-age children. They broadened their criteria to assist self-isolating individuals and households and they have been working with local community groups to share information and collaborate operationally to ensure that no one goes hungry during the pandemic.

 

Red Kite Radio is the full-time community radio station for Thame, Haddenham and the surrounding villages, run by a team of volunteers. COVID-19 has hit community radio stations considerably, with usual fundraising activities that fund the stations being brought to a halt. However, with the help of funding, the station has continued to run, providing local residents with the latest news regarding local facilities and bringing regular local listeners familiarity and comfort at an unprecedented time. They are even offering people the opportunity to speak to their friends and family using their Voicebox, through which you can share personal messages anywhere in the world.

 

SORRY, THE VOTE IS NOW CLOSED