A Place to be Proud Of Awards Categories 2026
Young Role Model Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A year 4 pupil at St Mary’s Junior School in Basingstoke, and one of this year’s outstanding finalists in our Young Role Model category.
At just eight years old, Arav has already made his mark on a global stage. Competing in a worldwide mathematics competition alongside more than 10 million participants, he achieved 2nd place in the United Kingdom and an incredible 10th place globally. It is the kind of result that would be remarkable at any age — but from a primary school pupil, it is truly inspiring.
Yet those who nominated Arav are just as keen to highlight the person behind the achievement. He is described as humble, hardworking, and determined — a young boy who simply loves learning and gives everything to whatever he puts his mind to. He has already been recognised by the Mayor of Basingstoke for his academic accomplishments, but you would never know it from the way he carries himself.
What truly sets Arav apart is the impact he has on those around him. Within his school and community, he is already a role model — encouraging classmates to challenge themselves, to believe in their abilities, and to see that hard work really does pay off.
Arav shows us that age is no barrier to excellence, and that one young person with passion and dedication can put an entire town on the map.
A sixth form student at Queen Mary’s College in Basingstoke, and one of this year’s remarkable finalists in our Young Role Model category.
Gabriel’s story begins with something many might see as a barrier. Living with Developmental Language Disorder, he could have stepped back from public life. Instead, he has stepped firmly forward — using his own experience to champion the rights of young people with SEND at local, county, and national level.
The scale of what Gabriel has achieved is extraordinary. As a Member of Youth Parliament for North West Hampshire, he has spoken in the House of Commons on disability rights and SEND provision — a speech that was shared widely on social media and led to a regional television interview. He was voted Chair of the Hampshire SEND Youth Forum in 2025, sits on strategic county-level policy boards, and created the SENDING Proposals — his own practical framework for inclusive education, which he presented directly to Hampshire County Council.
Nationally, Gabriel works closely with the charity Speech and Language UK, contributing to their Missing Millions Campaign and helping shape the organisation’s response to the government’s Schools White Paper. As their own team put it, his contributions are making a real difference to other young people.
Yet alongside all of this, Gabriel is a Young Leader at Scouts, is standing for EDI Officer at his college Students’ Union, and is quietly getting on with a demanding academic programme including Politics, Law, and Criminology.
Gabriel shows what it looks like when a young person refuses to be defined by their challenges — and chooses instead to change the world for others facing the same ones.
A Level 3 Public Services student at Basingstoke College of Technology, and one of this year’s exceptional finalists in our Young Role Model category.
Rosie is that rare kind of student who doesn’t just attend college — she helps run it. Alongside her studies in Uniformed Services, she holds three distinct leadership roles: student representative, college ambassador, and student governor. Each one would be impressive on its own. Together, they paint a picture of a young woman who has already made the leap from student to professional.
As Student Governor, Rosie sits in quarterly board meetings alongside senior management and experienced governors, holding her own and advocating effectively for her fellow learners. When the board reviewed the college’s student dashboard, it was Rosie’s input that kept the development grounded in what students actually need. Her college describes her as someone who translates student feedback into genuine board-level dialogue — and commands the respect of both students and governors in doing so.
Beyond the college walls, Rosie was invited to speak at the AoC Digital Insights Day earlier this year, addressing a professional audience on AI and technology in education. She has also volunteered at the Basingstoke Half Marathon, where external organisers singled her out as a credit to the college. What began as Duke of Edinburgh volunteering at the Vyne School has since become a part-time role in their PE department — a testament to the impression she leaves on everyone she works with.
Rosie is also quietly learning a new language in her spare time, because apparently that is just the kind of person she is.
Driven, dependable, and genuinely committed to her community — Rosie is exactly what this award is all about.
ine-year-old from Basingstoke, and one of this year’s most remarkable finalists in our Young Role Model category.
Sienna’s story is one that will stop you in your tracks.
At just two years old, Sienna was diagnosed with Chiari Malformation, a serious neurological condition that causes debilitating headaches, problems with balance, and extreme fatigue. Daily life is genuinely difficult. And yet, Sienna has spent her young life almost entirely focused on making things better for everyone else.
When her sister — who lives with both Chiari and Syringomyelia and has undergone two major brain surgeries — needed more support at home, Sienna made a quiet, extraordinary decision. She gave up her beloved gymnastics so she could be there to help with her sister’s exhausting daily physiotherapy routine. Nobody asked her to. She simply chose to.
That same instinct runs through everything Sienna does. She saves her birthday and pocket money to buy toys for children in hospital. She visits care homes. She donates to charity shops. She sits through long adult meetings — without complaint — to campaign for more accessible schools for disabled pupils. She has helped create mental health care packages for children who are struggling, and she is currently preparing to climb the O2 to raise further funds for charity.
Over the years, Sienna has raised thousands of pounds for causes close to her heart, including Spotlight UK Scarlett Smiles, a local charity that supports children facing some of life’s hardest circumstances. At Christmas, she was invited by the Princess of Wales to the Royal Carol Service at Westminster Abbey in recognition of her charity work.
She is nine years old, faces real pain every single day, and has never once complained.
And the winner is: Sienna Cripps
Charity Champion
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A proud Basingstoke resident of over 45 years, and one of this year’s well-deserving finalists in our Charity Champion category.
Every January, something rather wonderful happens at the Haymarket Theatre. Doctors, nurses, consultants, and hospital support staff take to the stage in a sell-out pantomime that has become one of the most beloved events in the local calendar. Behind every moment of it — the script, the direction, the performances, the organisation — is Julie.
Julie has been involved in the Basingstoke hospital pantomime for over 25 years, and for the past eight has been its driving force. Each year she dedicates around nine months to writing, producing, directing, and performing in the production, all entirely voluntarily. She retired from the NHS a few years ago, but you would never know it — her commitment to this event has not dimmed one bit.
The results speak for themselves. Over the years, Julie has helped raise more than £85,000 for Hampshire Hospitals Charity, with funds going directly towards patient care, staff wellbeing, and equipment that goes above and beyond standard NHS provision. This year’s production alone raised just under £10,000.
But the numbers only tell part of the story. What Julie has really created is something money can’t easily measure — a annual tradition that brings a community together, lifts the spirits of hospital staff, and reminds everyone in the audience just how much heart there is in this town.
Audiences regularly say it rivals professional productions. Tickets sell out every year. And at the centre of it all is Julie — quietly getting on with it, month after month, year after year.
A volunteer coordinator at Sebastian’s Action Trust, and one of this year’s truly deserving finalists in our Charity Champion category.
Seven years ago, Katie first visited Sebastian’s Action Trust when her daughter Bella was just ten months old. Bella has a rare genetic disorder that causes multiple daily seizures, is non-verbal, uses a wheelchair, and requires around-the-clock care. For their family, Sebastian’s Action Trust quickly became something invaluable — a place where they could simply breathe, surrounded by people who understood their world.
When the chance came to work for the charity, Katie took it. Not because it was convenient, but because she wanted to use everything she had been through to help other families facing the same unimaginable challenges.
As volunteer coordinator, Katie is the engine behind much of what the charity can offer. Sebastian’s Action Trust is small and relies heavily on volunteers to run activities, drive families to appointments, and support fundraising. Katie recruits, coordinates, and nurtures that vital network — while simultaneously acting as one of the charity’s most powerful ambassadors. She has spoken at WI groups, addressed business conferences, and led tours of the charity’s centre, The Bluebells. Her ability to bring the charity’s work to life has directly resulted in new donations, new volunteers, and new support.
She also manages social media for Basingstoke and District Disability Forum, has appeared on BBC News to campaign for better changing facilities for disabled people, and recently began teaching baby massage sessions — volunteering her time to offer them to supported families at The Bluebells.
Katie does all of this while raising three children, including Bella.
She knows firsthand what it means to feel less alone. And she has made it her mission to ensure other families feel the same.
A dedicated volunteer across the Basingstoke community, and one of this year’s warmly deserving finalists in our Charity Champion category.
If you have ever visited The Orchard in Basingstoke, there is a good chance you have been greeted by Matt. As a regular volunteer on reception, he is often the first face people see — and if that first impression sets the tone for everything that follows, Basingstoke is in very good hands.
Matt gives his time generously across several organisations based at The Orchard, including The Pink Place, the Basingstoke District Disability Forum, and the Café Project. Rather than focusing his efforts in one place, he simply shows up wherever he is needed — helping with event setup, supporting activities, welcoming visitors, and stepping in without hesitation whenever an extra pair of hands makes a difference.
At The Pink Place, Matt is a familiar and much-loved presence at fundraising events throughout the year. He brings energy and reliability in equal measure, and has even become a regular fixture on the charity’s quiz team — where his considerable knowledge of football comes in rather handy.
But it is not the practicalities that make Matt stand out. It is the way he makes people feel. His positivity is described by those around him as genuinely infectious. In spaces that often support vulnerable individuals, that warmth and approachability matter enormously. He creates an environment where people feel welcome, included, and valued — and he does it entirely naturally, without fanfare or fuss.
Matt is not attached to one cause or one organisation. He is simply committed to his community, and he shows that commitment quietly, consistently, and with a smile.
A Supported Lodgings Placement Coordinator at Step by Step in Basingstoke, and one of this year’s exceptionally deserving finalists in our Charity Champion category.
Rachel’s work sits at one of the sharpest edges of community need — supporting young people at risk of homelessness, matching them with host families, and doing everything in her power to make those placements work. It is complex, sensitive, and quietly vital work. And Rachel approaches every part of it with remarkable dedication.
What sets Rachel apart is the way she refuses to let process get in the way of people. She adjusts her hours to visit in the evenings when that is what is needed. She changes her days off to attend important appointments. She has personally driven a young person to football training and matches to maintain their routine and sense of belonging whilst their host was away. These are not grand gestures — they are small, consistent acts of care that add up to something transformative for the young people on the receiving end.
That same attentiveness extends to the host families she works with. Rachel visits regularly, offers practical guidance, and has even brought her laptop along to help hosts complete online training when IT access has been a barrier. She remembers milestones, checks in meaningfully, and ensures that the people giving their homes to vulnerable young people never feel alone in doing so.
Beyond her caseload, Rachel contributes to trauma-informed practice groups, supports recruitment events, and helps shape the training that strengthens care across the whole organisation.
She works largely behind the scenes, without fanfare. But for the young people and families whose lives she steadies, Rachel’s presence makes all the difference.
And the winner is: Julie Jones
Community Project Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A community institution serving the people of Basingstoke since 2012, and a very well-deserved finalist in this year’s Community Project category.
At its heart, the Foodbank does something simple and profound: it ensures that people in our community do not go without food. But look a little closer, and what you find is an operation of remarkable scale, complexity, and human warmth.
Operating from a central warehouse in Houndmills, the Foodbank supplies collection centres across the borough — in the town centre, Tadley, Winklebury, Brighton Hill, Sarum Hill, Buckskin, and Popley. For those who cannot get to a centre, daily home deliveries are made directly to the door. Referrals come through Citizens Advice, GPs, and social services, and every parcel is nutritionally balanced and tailored to individual need.
None of it would be possible without the volunteers. Van drivers, warehouse packers, centre staff, and delivery drivers — coordinated across rotas planned three months in advance — all give their time freely and consistently, week in, week out. Walk into the office above the warehouse and you will find three large boards covered in names, a quiet testament to just how many people it takes to keep this running.
But Basingstoke Foodbank is about far more than food. At every centre, volunteers offer a warm welcome, a cup of tea, and a genuinely listening ear. Citizens Advice advisors are on hand, and clients are connected to support with benefits, debt, energy costs, and beyond. Nobody is judged. Everybody is helped.
For over a decade, Basingstoke Foodbank has been there for individuals, families, and people of all ages — turning up, every single day, for the people who need it most.
A values-driven business movement founded by Kaia Vincent, and a thoroughly deserving finalist in this year’s Community Project category.
Launched in February 2025, Better Business for Good began with a simple but powerful idea: that doing good should be a natural part of doing business. In just over a year, what started as a framework has grown into a thriving membership community across Basingstoke and Deane, uniting local businesses behind a shared commitment to people, place, and purposeful action.
At the heart of it is Kaia. She founded BBfG at a moment when sustainability and community action can feel abstract or overwhelming for many businesses — and deliberately built something that feels the opposite. Accessible, practical, and rooted in real relationships. Members are verified against the BBfG framework and must demonstrate genuine commitment to fair pay, reducing their environmental impact, and giving back to their local community. This is not a badge to collect — it is a standard to meet and maintain.
What makes the project so compelling is the way it multiplies impact. Businesses learn from one another, collaborate on community challenges, and take steps they might never have taken alone. Initiatives like Hop into Reading — bringing businesses together to tackle local literacy challenges — show how creatively Kaia connects social and environmental goals in ways that make a tangible difference to people’s lives.
In November, BBfG held its first awards ceremony, supported by Basingstoke MP Luke Murphy, celebrating the achievements of verified members in year one. It was a marker of just how far this community has come in a remarkably short time.
Kaia leads with authenticity and a quiet determination that small actions, multiplied across a community, can add up to something transformative.
A Basingstoke-based animal rescue and community organisation, and a truly special finalist in this year’s Community Project category.
Most people assume an animal rescue rehomes pets. Helping Dogs and Cats does that — but rehoming is very much their last resort. Their founding belief is simpler and more powerful than that: keep pets and people together wherever it is safe to do so.
So instead of removing animals from struggling families, they build support around them. They run a community pet food bank, currently helping more than 200 households keep their pets fed. They offer low-cost grooming to prevent unintentional neglect, free microchipping to reduce strays, and behavioural advice to resolve problems before they escalate. When an owner is hospitalised, they provide emergency fostering. When someone is physically unable to walk their dog, they do it for them.
Their volunteers — entirely unpaid, entirely dedicated — work seven days a week. Delivering supplies, scanning lost cats, trapping injured animals, and responding to worried residents who simply do not know where else to turn.
At the centre of it all is their community shop, which has become something far beyond a charity retail space. It is a warm, welcoming hub where students gain work experience, isolated residents drop in for a cup of tea, and people feel safe to ask for help without fear of judgement. Nobody is judged here. Ever.
The ripple effect of their work is considerable — reducing pressure on councils, vets, and national charities, whilst quietly improving animal welfare and human wellbeing across the town.
They do not just rescue animals from crisis. They prevent the crisis from happening in the first place.
Meet The Baton of Hope Basingstoke Tour — brought to life by Inclusion Education and Relationships Director, Marie Greenhalgh, and a deeply meaningful finalist in this year’s Community Project category.
On 25 September 2025, something remarkable happened in Basingstoke. A community came together — organisations, volunteers, professionals, and residents — united around one of the most important and difficult conversations we can have: suicide prevention and mental health.
The Baton of Hope is both a physical object and a powerful symbol. As it travelled across the town and borough, it connected communities, carried lived experience, and created spaces where people felt safe enough to speak openly and honestly. This was not a single event with a single audience. It was a connected journey, designed from the outset to reach people wherever they were — whatever their age, background, or experience.
What made this project genuinely innovative was its refusal to stop at awareness. Support services were embedded directly into every stage, meaning that conversations could lead immediately to action. People were not just informed — they were connected. Barriers to accessing help were actively dismantled, not left for individuals to navigate alone.
The impact on the day was powerful. But the legacy may matter even more. New partnerships were forged, existing networks were strengthened, and a foundation was laid for ongoing collaboration around mental health and isolation across Basingstoke and Deane.
None of it would have happened without Marie Greenhalgh, whose determination and leadership turned an ambitious idea into one of the most impactful community projects this borough has seen.
She brought the Baton to Basingstoke. The community carried it forward.
And the winner is: Inclusion Education / Baton of Hope
Green Community Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A community horticultural group rooted in Basingstoke, and a richly deserving finalist in this year’s Green Champion category.
For ten years, Wellness N’ Wellies has been quietly doing something extraordinary — nurturing the natural environment, growing organic food, restoring native plants and wildflowers, and creating community garden spaces where people of all ages and backgrounds can come together. The results speak for themselves: 18 Gold Royal Horticultural Society awards, plus two further Gold Awards for Biodiversity and Environmental Sustainability in 2025 alone.
But this is far more than a gardening group.
Everything Wellness N’ Wellies does is considered through an environmental lens. They use peat-free compost, harvest rainwater, practice drip irrigation, and build garden furniture from reclaimed pallets. Spent food from their cooking programme and food bank is composted via a hot bin, producing rich organic feed used throughout the garden. Plastic labelling has been replaced with upcycled wood and slate. Even their tree planting — Silver Birch, Ginkgo, honeysuckle — is chosen deliberately to reduce local air pollution.
Their educational work is equally impressive. They run free Nature Hours for local schools, an annual horticultural work placement programme for SEN students, and work alongside Basingstoke Rotary clubs to green up parks, roads, and public spaces across the borough.
Their community garden welcomes everyone from age four to 94 — including immigrants, refugees, and people from all walks of life — offering a space for physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing, and for some, a gentle pathway into community life in Britain.
Each week they help repurpose two to three tonnes of surplus food, redirecting it to food banks and homeless shelters.
An environmental campaigner, co-operative founder, and community organiser, and one of this year’s most long-standing finalists in our Green Champion category.
If you have been paying attention to environmental issues in Basingstoke and Deane over the past few decades, there is a good chance Martin has been somewhere behind them. As co-founder of both the Basingstoke Energy Co-operative and the Hampshire Renewable Energy Co-operative, and a longstanding member of the Basingstoke Transition Network, he has been building the foundations of a more sustainable community long before sustainability became a mainstream conversation.
What makes Martin’s contribution so remarkable is not any single campaign or initiative — it is the sheer consistency of it. Year after year, decade after decade, he has shown up. Writing informed articles and newspaper columns to educate the wider public. Partnering with community groups to drive meaningful change. Recruiting and inspiring volunteers of all ages, building networks of committed individuals who carry that momentum forward long after any one project ends.
His enthusiasm is described by those around him as genuinely infectious. He does not just raise awareness — he shifts how people think about their surroundings and their responsibility towards them. Residents who have engaged with Martin’s work have gone on to adopt more sustainable habits, take greater pride in local green spaces, and feel a stronger sense of shared ownership over the environment they live in.
That ripple effect — person to person, year to year — is perhaps his greatest achievement.
Environmental movements need people who will still be there in ten years. Martin has already been there for several decades.
The umbrella organisation for nature conservation across Basingstoke and Deane, and a tremendously deserving finalist in this year’s Green Champion category.
In 2024, the network of over 18 conservation groups supported by Natural Basingstoke collectively delivered more than 12,000 volunteer hours caring for the borough’s woodlands, meadows, ponds, and hedgerows. That number alone tells you something important about what this organisation has built.
Natural Basingstoke exists to do something that sounds simple but is genuinely difficult: unite a growing collection of local conservation groups behind a shared purpose, amplify their collective voice, and ensure that individual groups have the knowledge, tools, and support to make every hour of volunteer time count. In a borough where just five percent of land is actively managed for nature, that work has never mattered more.
The practical impact is tangible and wide-ranging. Wildflower meadows are being restored to bring back lost flora and support pollinators. Ponds and wetlands are being managed to protect newts and a regionally significant amphibian population. Ancient woodland is being coppiced and hedgerows laid — heritage skills that also create vital new habitats for wildlife.
But Natural Basingstoke is about far more than ecology. It is explicitly welcoming, requiring no prior experience, and draws in everyone from children on educational days to retirees seeking connection and purpose. It engages with the local authority to shape biodiversity strategy, and provides a single, informed voice for nature at a time when Basingstoke and Deane has declared an ecological emergency.
This is conservation that is strategic, inclusive, and deeply rooted in community.
Twelve thousand hours of love for this borough’s natural world. In a single year.
Founder of Sustainable Silchester — and one of this year’s inspiring finalists in our Green Champion category.
When Vanessa set up Sustainable Silchester in 2021, she started with 18 volunteers and a clear belief that real change begins close to home. Four years on, that belief has translated into something genuinely impressive — a thriving, practical sustainability movement that has touched almost every corner of village life in Silchester.
The breadth of what Sustainable Silchester has achieved is striking. Thermal imaging cameras have been loaned out dozens of times to help local households identify and tackle heat loss. Around 35 homes have since been thermally imaged to help residents reduce their energy consumption. The local school worked with the group to cut its carbon footprint, resulting in improved insulation. A greener homes fair was organised to share knowledge and inspire action across the wider community.
But Vanessa’s approach goes well beyond energy efficiency. Bat walks and annual glow worm hunts draw up to 40 people at a time, reconnecting residents with the natural world on their doorstep. A community garden showcases the joys of growing your own food. A pollinator patch and a bug hotel in the pub garden are quietly supporting local biodiversity. A clothes swap encouraged more circular thinking about consumption.
Perhaps most enduringly, Vanessa collaborated with Silchester Brownies to create a sustainability badge that has now been completed by around 150 Brownies across Hampshire — planting the seeds of environmental responsibility in the next generation.
In 2024, the group joined the Greening Campaign, recruiting a further 26 volunteers and the Silchester Guides.
Vanessa started with an idea and 18 willing hands. Look what grew.
And the winner is: Natural Basingstoke
Health & Wellbeing Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
Health & Wellbeing: Basingstoke Junior Parkrun
Meet Basingstoke Junior Parkrun — and the team behind it, led by Cerys — a very worthy finalist in this year’s Health & Wellbeing category.
Every Sunday morning, rain or shine, children aged four to fourteen gather at Stratton Park to sprint, jog, walk, or skip their way around a two kilometre course. It is free. It is welcoming. No commitment is required — families simply turn up and join in. And in 2026, it celebrates ten years of doing exactly that.
Since 2016, thousands of children have taken part, collectively covering more than 84,000 kilometres — more than twice the circumference of the earth. But the real distance travelled is harder to measure: the confidence quietly built, the friendships formed, the love of movement that takes root early and lasts a lifetime.
None of it happens by accident. Cerys and the core volunteer team work largely out of sight — carrying out early morning course checks, coordinating volunteers, managing timing and finish tokens, processing results, and ensuring every child who reaches a milestone distance is properly celebrated. Fancy dress weeks, Easter eggs, encouragement at every turn. The children and families experience something effortless and joyful. The team make sure it stays that way.
The event has recently joined the Parkrun Primary initiative, linking with five local primary schools to extend its reach still further into the community — bringing the benefits of regular outdoor exercise to children who might not otherwise find their way to Stratton Park on a Sunday.
The evidence is clear that regular physical activity supports children’s mental health, resilience, and long-term wellbeing. Cerys and her team have been quietly delivering exactly that, every single week, for a decade.
Founded by Steve and Becky Dennis in Basingstoke, and a truly special finalist in this year’s Health & Wellbeing category.
Steve Dennis’s story begins with a personal turning point. After reversing his own type 2 diabetes through lifestyle change, he and Becky set out to share what they had learned — starting with bootcamps in a church hall and building something that would go on to change thousands of lives across Basingstoke.
At its peak, Fitness Flex was delivering more than 60 hours of sessions every week from their Brighton Hill facility. Guerrilla Camp for children. Forever Flex for older adults. High energy group training for everyone in between. But what made Fitness Flex genuinely different was never really the exercise — it was the culture. Members were known by name. Check-ins were personal and consistent. Nutrition, accountability, and genuine human care sat at the heart of everything.
The results were remarkable. Members reported coming off medication, reversing diabetes risk factors, improving their mental health, and transforming their lives in ways that went far beyond fitness. In a community that had precious little choice when Steve and Becky started out in 2012, Fitness Flex became a trailblazer — and then an institution.
Their fundraising legacy is equally impressive. Through Tough Mudders, 24-hour bike and rowing events, Easter festivals, and a world record burpee attempt, Fitness Flex raised tens of thousands of pounds directly for local charities — whilst inspiring members’ own sponsored challenges that have likely generated hundreds of thousands more for causes including St Michael’s Hospice, Naomi House, and the Brittle Bone Society.
The lease may have ended, but the mission continues through Dennis Coaching online.
A fast-growing mental health organisation working across Basingstoke and beyond, and a very deserving finalist in this year’s Health & Wellbeing category.
In just one year, Quince Counselling has grown from a team of two to five dedicated professionals, now delivering daily counselling in more than ten schools across the South. At a time when mental health waiting lists are long and services are stretched, they have stepped into the gap — ensuring that children and young people have consistent, early access to support that might otherwise never reach them.
This year marked a significant milestone with the opening of their own purpose-built facilities: private counselling rooms alongside a fully equipped boxing gym. It is an inspired combination. For young people struggling with anger, disengagement, or emotional regulation, the ability to move, release energy, and then talk in a safe space has been genuinely transformative. Schools now use the facilities for PE sessions that quietly weave emotional wellbeing into everyday life — normalising mental health conversations in the most natural way possible.
Quince Counselling also works closely with young offenders, Children’s Services, and safeguarding teams, reaching some of the most vulnerable young people in the community. And they are the founding counsellors behind the GOAT Boys project — pairing 50 young men who lack positive role models with 50 respected community members. The project has received national coverage on Sky News, with over 100 schools across the country expressing interest in replicating it.
Away from their day-to-day work, the team completed a 200km charity run and cycle from Galway to Dublin in just two days, raising more than £6,000 for St Michael’s Hospice.
They are not just supporting young people. They are changing how an entire community thinks about mental health.
A Basingstoke-based charity supporting children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions and the families who love them, and a truly moving finalist in this year’s Health & Wellbeing category.
Caring for a child with complex needs is one of the hardest things a family can face. The relentless medical appointments, the juggling of caring responsibilities, the constant underlying worry — it takes a profound toll on everyone, including parents, siblings, and grandparents. Sebastian’s Action Trust exists to make sure no family has to carry that weight alone.
At the heart of their work is The Bluebells, their purpose-built centre in North Waltham — a warm, inclusive, and fully accessible space where families can simply breathe. The facilities are extraordinary: a hydrotherapy pool offering children freedom of movement they may not find elsewhere; a sensory room supporting play and development; music therapy sessions for children including those who are non-verbal; a wheelchair-accessible playground; a craft studio; and beautiful gardens to explore. Purpose-built apartments allow whole families — siblings, grandparents, carers — to stay together in an environment designed entirely around their needs.
But what The Bluebells offers goes beyond any list of facilities. It is a community. A place where parents meet others who truly understand their world, where siblings can be with children who share their experience, and where counselling and peer support groups provide space to process, connect, and restore.
As one mum puts it: “It’s a place free from judgement — a lifeline of knowledge and empowerment.”
Another says simply: “Without it I wouldn’t be the person I am today.”
Sebastian’s Action Trust reminds us that a community which wraps its arms around its most vulnerable families is one worth being proud of.
And the winner is: Quince Counselling
Inspirational Educator Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A teacher at St Bede’s Catholic Primary School in Basingstoke, and a wonderfully deserving finalist in this year’s Inspirational Educator category.
In eight years at St Bede’s, Aggie has become one of those teachers that children and families simply do not forget. Warm, visionary, and deeply committed to every child in her care, she brings the school’s mission to “love one another” to life in the most practical and meaningful way — through the way she teaches, the culture she creates, and the confidence she quietly builds in every young person she works with.
St Bede’s is a richly diverse community, with 74 percent of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and more than 32 languages spoken across the school. Rather than simply acknowledging that diversity, Aggie has made it one of the school’s greatest strengths. As the founder of St Bede’s Inclusion and Diversity Leader role — a position she created and has shaped from scratch — she has built a programme that ensures every child feels seen, celebrated, and proud of who they are.
Her flagship achievement is the school’s annual International Day, where pupils wear traditional dress, share food from their heritage, and explore cultures from around the world. It has become one of the most cherished events in the school calendar. Alongside it, Aggie coordinates a rich programme of cultural celebrations throughout the year — from Black History Month and Diwali to Down Syndrome Day and Young Carers Awareness Day — each one a meaningful opportunity for children to broaden their understanding of the world and of each other.
Under Aggie’s influence, pupils leave St Bede’s not just with academic foundations, but with empathy, confidence, and a genuine pride in their identity.
Headteacher of Brighton Hill Community School and founder of the GOAT Boys project, and a truly outstanding finalist in this year’s Inspirational Educator category.
Chris Edwards is the kind of school leader who looks at what young people are struggling with and asks not just how school can help, but how an entire community can respond. That instinct is what gave birth to GOAT Boys — Greatest Of All The Boys — one of the most compelling mentoring initiatives to emerge from Basingstoke in years.
The project began with a simple but sobering observation: too many boys in Year 9 and 10 had no trusted adult outside their family to turn to. Chris set out to change that. Working with his Deputy Head Pete Beeching and supported by Quince Counselling, he built a programme that connects young men with dedicated community mentors, meeting monthly to build trust, confidence, and aspiration. To date, 79 community volunteers have been recruited, with an ambition to reach 100 — enough to make Basingstoke the first town in the country where every boy has a trusted adult beyond his home.
The impact has been profound. Boys describe life as more positive. Two Year 9 pupils were so moved by the project that they organised a GOAT-athon to help fund its expansion. Nationally, 78 schools have expressed interest in replicating the model after it attracted widespread media coverage — and even international attention.
At Brighton Hill, Chris has built a school culture rooted in inclusion, belonging, and belief — where pupils are encouraged to grow not just academically, but as resilient, confident young people.
He has gone far beyond the school gates. And in doing so, he has changed what is possible for a generation of boys in Basingstoke.
An art educator, wellbeing practitioner, and quiet force of joy in the Basingstoke community, and a warmly deserving finalist in this year’s Inspirational Educator category.
For over thirty years, Jacky has been using art to do something that no prescription can quite replicate — making people feel better about themselves and the world around them. Whether she is working with a five-year-old discovering colour for the first time, a student building towards a creative career, or a resident in a care home finding a moment of peace and pleasure, Jacky brings the same thing every time: genuine warmth, boundless enthusiasm, and an art trolley that is reportedly stocked with just about every resource known to mankind.
Her career as an FE tutor gave countless young people the skills and confidence to go on and build creative lives of their own. But it is perhaps her work beyond the classroom that is most remarkable. Jacky works regularly with people living with dementia, people with disabilities, and people simply going through a difficult time — using art not as a pastime, but as a genuine tool for wellbeing, connection, and respite.
Those who have seen her work describe something almost transformative: people arriving quiet or withdrawn, and leaving lighter. Nursing homes are brighter for her visits. Individuals who might never have considered themselves creative discover something new about themselves under her guidance.
Jacky would tell you she is simply doing her job. But the people whose days she lifts — week after week, year after year — know differently.
There are educators who teach skills. And then there are educators who change how people feel about themselves.
An AAT tutor at Basingstoke College of Technology, and a richly deserving finalist in this year’s Inspirational Educator category.
Accountancy is not, on the face of it, the most obviously inspiring subject. Double-entry bookkeeping, tax codes, financial compliance — rigorous, precise, and unforgiving. Which makes what Jan Harris does all the more remarkable.
Under Jan’s guidance, BCoT students consistently achieve results above the national average, go on to secure employment, and earn promotions in recognition of skills built in her classroom. At a time when colleges across the country are closing their AAT provisions due to a shortage of qualified tutors, Jan has made BCoT a regional stronghold for accountancy training. During a recent External Quality Assurance visit, inspectors were unanimous: her standard of delivery is a significant outlier in the sector.
But exam results only tell part of the story. Jan understands that the path to becoming an accountant is rarely straightforward, and she provides the kind of steady, patient support that keeps students moving forward when life gets in the way. From managing assessment anxiety to simply being someone who listens, she is the safety net her learners rely on. She even marks the end of each academic year with a pizza party — because she believes achievements deserve to be celebrated.
Her commitment to others extends well beyond the college. She volunteers with Citizens Advice, helping vulnerable people navigate complex systems, and batch-cooks weekly at the Camrose Centre for people facing homelessness and isolation.
As one student puts it: “Jan has by far been the best teacher I have ever had.”
As an EQA inspector noted: “BCoT is incredibly fortunate to have a tutor of this calibre.”
And the winner is: Chris Edwards
Sports Personality of the Year Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A middle-distance coach at Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC, and a truly exceptional finalist in this year’s Sports Personality of the Year category.
There are coaches who produce good athletes. And then there are coaches who put a town on the map. Dave Ragan is firmly in the second category.
Under his guidance, Basingstoke has become a nationally recognised centre of excellence for middle-distance running. The headline achievements are extraordinary: Ben Pattison’s bronze medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, following his Commonwealth Games bronze in 2022, represent some of the finest results ever achieved by an athlete from a community club in Britain. Reece Sharman-Newell’s 1:45 800m breakthrough and BMC Grand Prix victories add further weight to Dave’s reputation as one of the UK’s leading coaches at any level.
The honours reflect it — South East Coach of the Year, British Milers’ Club Coach of the Year — with judges noting his “quiet efficiency” and the remarkable consistency with which his athletes improve.
But what makes Dave truly deserving of this recognition is everything that sits alongside the medals. He has built a training environment where athletes of all ages and abilities feel valued, supported, and believed in. Junior athletes are achieving top-20 UK rankings and club records. Others have simply discovered a love of running, or found confidence and community through sport — outcomes Dave prizes just as highly as podium finishes.
Patient, meticulous, and genuinely humble, he is the kind of coach athletes describe as believing in them before they believe in themselves. He has not just developed world-class runners. He has shaped what Basingstoke thinks it is capable of.
A grassroots football coach at Kingsclere Youth Football Club, and one of this year’s most warmly loved finalists in our Sports Personality of the Year category.
Twenty years. Every week. Rain, wind, mud, and all. And not once did Dean Tierney ask for anything in return.
For two decades, Dean has given his time, knowledge, and seemingly boundless good humour to young footballers across Basingstoke and Deane — continuing long after his own children had finished their grassroots journey, simply because he loved doing it and believed in what it gave the kids. This season, he hangs up his whistle for the last time. It feels right to mark that properly.
What Dean built at Kingsclere Youth Football Club goes far beyond football. He created a community. He took the time to know every parent, sibling, and family member by name — making sure nobody ever felt on the outside of the Kingsclere family. At presentation evenings, he quietly bought medals from his own pocket to give to younger siblings, so they would not be forgotten. He spotted parents on the touchline who had something to offer and gave them the confidence to have a go at coaching themselves — several of whom have gone on to keep grassroots football alive for a new generation of children.
The children he has coached over the years speak of him with real affection. He is the kind of coach — like the kind of teacher — that you simply never forget.
Encouraging, funny, selfless, and genuinely kind. That is Dean Tierney in four words.
He is heading to a well-deserved retirement in Ireland with his wife Kim. Kingsclere will miss him enormously.
A junior athlete at Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC, and one of this year’s most exciting finalists in our Sports Personality of the Year category.
Niraj, as he is known at the club, is still at the beginning of his athletic journey. But what a beginning it has been.
A dedicated middle-distance and cross-country runner, Niraj has already competed and succeeded at county, regional, and national level — a trajectory that marks him out as one of the most promising young endurance athletes in the country. His standout moment came at the English Schools Cross Country Championships, where a performance of remarkable maturity earned him his first England vest. It is one of the most prestigious honours available to a young athlete in this country, and Niraj wore it having thoroughly deserved it.
At county level he has been a consistent and dominant presence, regularly finishing among Hampshire’s leading junior athletes and contributing meaningfully to team success. On the track or over muddy cross-country terrain, he approaches every race with the same focus, professionalism, and quiet determination.
What makes Niraj’s story particularly compelling is the person behind the performances. Coaches and teammates describe him as humble, positive, and genuinely supportive of those around him. Younger athletes look up to him. Older athletes admire his maturity. He trains with purpose, takes on coaching guidance thoughtfully, and manages the demands of school, training, and competition with a discipline that would be impressive at any age.
He remains entirely grounded. Every achievement simply becomes motivation to work harder.
Basingstoke has a proud tradition of producing exceptional middle-distance talent. In Niraj, that tradition is in very good hands.
An 11-year-old aerobic gymnast from Lychpit, and one of this year’s most inspiring finalists in our Sports Personality of the Year category.
Last year, Sophie and her trio at Basingstoke Gymnastics Club won every single competition they entered. They finished the season as British Champions. That alone would be worthy of celebration. But Sophie’s story has an extra dimension that makes her achievement all the more remarkable.
Sophie lives with Type 1 diabetes. She is insulin dependent, relies on multiple daily injections, and must constantly monitor her blood glucose levels — a complex, relentless, and highly individualised balancing act at the best of times. During intensive physical exercise, that challenge becomes significantly more demanding. The body cannot automatically adjust insulin production, meaning every training session requires meticulous planning, careful management, and real mental resilience.
Sophie trains thirteen hours a week. She does all of this at eleven years old, with a maturity and confidence in managing her condition that leaves those around her quietly astonished. She is not just coping — she is thriving, competing at the very highest level of her sport, and doing so with a determination to show that Type 1 diabetes is no barrier to excellence.
Her coaches describe her as hardworking, dedicated, and always striving to improve. But they are just as quick to note her character — exceptionally friendly, supportive of her teammates, and always making sure everyone around her feels included and valued, even whilst managing her own considerable challenges.
This year, Sophie has her sights set on regional, national, and international success.
Something tells us she will not be easily stopped.
And the winner is: Dave Ragan
Sports Club of the Year Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
One of Hampshire’s leading swimming clubs, and a thoroughly deserving finalist in this year’s Sports Club of the Year category.
In early 2026, Bluefins achieved their best-ever result at the Hampshire Championships, finishing second overall. Ninety-two swimmers qualified to compete, collectively claiming 42 county titles alongside a host of medals and finals performances. It was a landmark moment — but one that had been years in the making.
Over five consecutive years of sustained growth, Bluefins has quietly built something special. The club now supports more than 400 members across a wide range of squads and pathways, from swimmers taking their first competitive steps right through to regional and national-level athletes. In 2025, club records were broken 169 times — the highest annual total in the club’s history — and that success is built on genuine depth across the whole squad rather than a handful of standout performers.
What makes Bluefins particularly impressive is the breadth of what it offers. Alongside its competitive programme, the club runs fitness squads, Junior and Adult Masters swimming, disability and inclusive swimming, water polo, and — new for this year — open water swimming. There is genuinely something for everyone, at every stage of life.
Inclusion sits at the heart of the club’s approach. Swimmers with disabilities train alongside their peers, and pathways are designed to keep people engaged in aquatic sport for the long term — not just through their junior years.
None of it happens without the army of volunteers, coaches, officials, and parent helpers who keep everything running week after week. Led by Head of Swimming Spencer Turner and Chair Fleur Turner, this is a club with strong foundations and an exciting future.
Basingstoke’s home of parkour, freerunning, and tricking, and a brilliantly original finalist in this year’s Sports Club of the Year category.
Not every young person finds their place in a traditional sports club. Some need something a little different — something that channels energy, creativity, and a desire to move in ways that feel exciting and genuinely their own. That is exactly what PFT Academy offers, and it has built something remarkable in doing so.
Through weekly classes, holiday camps, and school partnerships, the academy provides a safe and structured environment where participants of all ages and abilities can learn to move, build fitness, and grow in confidence. The coaching is professional and passionate, the atmosphere is welcoming, and the focus extends well beyond physical skills — discipline, teamwork, resilience, and personal growth are woven into every session.
What sets PFT Academy apart is its genuine commitment to accessibility. Free trial sessions, sibling discounts, and inclusive programmes ensure that financial barriers do not prevent young people from taking part. The academy works hard to reach a wide range of backgrounds, and that effort shows in the diversity and community spirit of those who walk through its doors.
The impact on young people is tangible. Students describe improved confidence, better mental wellbeing, and a real sense of belonging — the kind of outcomes that go far beyond anything a leaderboard can measure. For many, PFT Academy is not just somewhere to train. It is somewhere they feel at home.
By offering an alternative to traditional sport and making it accessible to all, PFT Academy has added something genuinely distinctive to the fabric of Basingstoke.
A community running group based in Sherfield Park, and a wonderfully warm finalist in this year’s Sports Club of the Year category.
Sherfield Park Runners was built on a simple but powerful belief: that running is for everyone. No matter your age, background, fitness level, or experience, you will find a place here. Their motto says it all — No One Runs Alone.
In 2024 and 2025, the club ran three Couch to 5K courses, led by run leaders Matt, Louise, and Keith, and supported by a dedicated team of volunteering members who gave their time to encourage and guide every participant through the nine-week programme. More than 80 people graduated across those courses, many of whom have since joined the club and kept running. The graduation events at Basingstoke Parkrun were celebrated with real community spirit — fellow runners cheering on people who, just weeks earlier, had never considered themselves runners at all.
The club also organised food bank runs, where members — families and children included — ran with donations to support local people facing hardship. Sport and community spirit, combined in the most practical and generous way.
Sherfield Park Runners is also part of the Run to Talk programme, using running to support mental health and reduce stigma, with regular coffee and catch-up mornings creating space for connection beyond the miles.
The feedback from members speaks volumes. One new runner describes finally finding a love for running after years of struggle. Another says her family have not seen her this well in years.
These are not just running achievements. They are life-changing moments, made possible by a club that genuinely cares.
A Basingstoke-based cheerleading club offering opportunities for young athletes from their very first steps to the world stage, and an exciting finalist in this year’s Sports Club of the Year category.
Cheerleading is not what many people imagine. It is a demanding, highly skilled sport combining gymnastics, acrobatics, dance, and strength training — one that requires fitness, coordination, trust, and an extraordinary level of teamwork. WCA has been channelling all of that into something special for young people in and around Basingstoke.
Athletes at WCA train between three and eight hours a week, with commitment ramping up further during competition season. From development classes for complete beginners to competitive teams that travel to the World Championships in Florida, the club supports athletes at every level and stage of their journey. Every session builds not just physical strength and technical ability, but confidence, resilience, and genuine self-belief.
What makes cheerleading uniquely powerful as a sport is the trust it demands. Flyers rely on their bases. Bases communicate with spotters. The entire team moves as one. That culture of mutual support and accountability shapes young people in ways that extend far beyond the mat — into school, friendships, and life.
WCA is also proudly inclusive, welcoming athletes of all backgrounds and abilities, and creating an environment where those who may never have found their place in traditional sport discover they can shine. Shy beginners become confident performers. Teams celebrate each other’s victories and face setbacks together.
From local competitions to the world championships in Florida, WCA is putting Basingstoke on the map — one routine at a time.
And the winner is: Wolverines Cheerleading Academy
Arts & Entertainment Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
Meet Basingstoke Amateur Theatrical Society — and their landmark production of Come from Away, a very deserving finalist in this year’s Arts & Entertainment category.
Come from Away tells the extraordinary true story of a community that opened its arms to strangers in their darkest hour. It is a show about kindness, humanity, and what happens when people choose to show up for one another. BATS did not just perform it. They built an entire community movement around it.
Representatives and volunteers from 20 local charities and community organisations were invited to a special performance, joined by the winners of a Nominate a Hero campaign that gave Basingstoke and Deane residents the chance to celebrate the quiet heroes in their lives. Representatives from 15 local multicultural groups attended, creating what BATS had always envisioned — a true picture of a united community. Over 350 local heroes came together in the Haymarket for an evening of theatre, recognition, and genuine celebration.
The heroes nominated were wonderfully diverse: a financial adviser giving free money education in local schools; a paramedic offering free CPR classes and face painting at fundraising events; two women in their eighties running a weekly coffee morning for elderly residents; a man who has become the heartbeat of a sheltered accommodation community; and many more besides.
The cast embraced the spirit of the show beyond the stage too, carrying out random acts of kindness in the community and beyond.
Audience members described the evening as joyous, thought-provoking, and utterly uplifting. One said simply: “It was difficult to believe it was an amateur production.”
BATS turned a show into something far greater — a love letter to Basingstoke and the people who make it worth being proud of.
Basingstoke’s own marching drum corps, and a brilliantly spirited finalist in this year’s Arts & Entertainment category.
Every great story needs a good beginning. This one starts with a phone call.
In 2022, the Mayor’s office rang the Basingstoke Silver Band looking for drummers to lead the Remembrance Parade. The Silver Band didn’t march — but two of their members had once been part of the Cavalier Marching Band, a group that had put Basingstoke firmly on the marching band map back in the 1990s. They borrowed some drums, stood together for the first time in thirty years, and led the parade.
Something stirred. Others wanted in. The following year there were five. And it has grown steadily ever since.
The BSB Cavaliers are now an established part of the Basingstoke Silver Band family, committed to training new members and ensuring the Remembrance Parade always marches to a beat. Under the leadership of Lead Drummer Andrew Stead, they have gone on to perform at events across Basingstoke and the surrounding area, and will be leading this year’s Basingstoke Festival parade.
But the Cavaliers are about more than performances. At fetes and community events across the borough, they actively invite people to try the drums, share their passion for musical education, and carry forward a tradition that is woven into the fabric of this town’s history. Their members have played in Basingstoke carnivals and Saturday events for decades. They know what this community means — and they show up for it, sticks in hand, every time they are needed.
A small group with a big beat and a proud history.
Basingstoke’s award-winning community choir, and a beautifully deserving finalist in this year’s Arts & Entertainment category.
For over sixty years, Hampshire Harmony has been bringing people together through music. That kind of longevity is rare — and it speaks to something genuine at the heart of this choir. Not just a love of singing, but a deep and sustained commitment to the community it calls home.
Under the musical direction of Clare Oliver, Hampshire Harmony performs to a consistently high standard, with a repertoire that ranges across show tunes, sacred music, popular songs, and music from other cultures. That breadth is deliberate — ensuring performances are accessible, inclusive, and genuinely engaging for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Clare’s exceptional teaching and musical leadership draw the very best from every singer, fostering confidence, teamwork, and artistic pride in equal measure.
But Hampshire Harmony is about far more than what happens on stage. As a registered charity, the choir runs a busy calendar of concerts and events throughout the year, raising vital funds for local causes and using the power of music to strengthen community connections. Giving back is not an afterthought here — it is central to everything the choir does.
For its members, Hampshire Harmony offers something equally valuable: friendship, belonging, and the quiet confidence that comes from being part of something excellent. New generations of singers continue to find their way to the choir, drawn by its reputation, its warmth, and its musical ambition.
Sixty years of bringing joy to Basingstoke. Sixty years of using music to make a difference.
A Community Interest Company bringing theatre, creativity, and joy to Basingstoke since 2014, and a wonderfully vibrant finalist in this year’s Arts & Entertainment category.
Scratch Built is perhaps best known for their magical, immersive Christmas shows at Proteus Creation Space — now in their twelfth year and firmly established as one of the most beloved fixtures in the local family calendar. People travel from Reading for them. Families squeeze in one more year long after their children have technically outgrown it. That kind of loyalty is earned, not given.
Led by Artistic Directors Becky Kitter and Nick Ash, Scratch Built is built on a simple but powerful belief: that theatre and creative experience should be available to everyone, regardless of additional needs, neurodiversity, or financial barriers. Their sensory-rich, immersive productions are designed to welcome children who might be excluded elsewhere — including those who cannot see or hear — creating safe, joyful spaces where every child can participate and express themselves freely.
Beyond the stage, Scratch Built produces the Basingstoke Festival opening parade, bringing together schools, colleges, and community groups in a free, drop-in celebration that builds genuine local pride. Their Creative Club gives young teenagers and parents space to reconnect through making. Their YB Creative programme opens doors to the creative industries for 18 to 25 year olds — no expensive courses required. Their monthly makers market platforms local artists and young entrepreneurs alike.
In 2024 to 2025 alone, over 4,900 people were engaged through their work.
Scratch Built Productions is not simply a theatre company. It is a community hub, a creative catalyst, and proof that art genuinely changes lives. Puppets, parades, and pure Basingstoke magic.
And the winner is: Scratch Built Productions
Unsung Hero Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
Non-Executive Director and Relationship Consultant for the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, and a richly deserving finalist in this year’s Unsung Hero category.
The word “unsung” feels particularly apt for Barry. Because while his fingerprints are on an extraordinary range of initiatives across Basingstoke and beyond, he tends to be found quietly in the background — connecting people, opening doors, and making things happen without any particular desire for the spotlight.
For over twelve years, Barry has chaired the Basingstoke Business Strategy Group, acting as a collective voice to keep the town’s commercial interests heard. He has coordinated the Unlocking Hampshire’s Green Potential conferences, pushing leaders towards practical action on the green skills gap. He has championed neurodiversity through his Future Potential series, working with Inclusion Education to create real employment outcomes for neurodivergent individuals — and then establishing quarterly peer support meetings to make sure those individuals continue to thrive once in work.
As a long-standing Governor and Ambassador for BCoT, Barry has pioneered an Employer-Student Exchange scheme that puts industry expertise directly in front of students, with Health and Social Care already benefiting and Construction in the pipeline. For fifteen years he has served as Ambassador and Vice Patron of St Michael’s Hospice, rallying the business community behind its £6.2 million annual need. He has been part of the Basingstoke and Deane Anti-Poverty Partnership. He was a supporting force behind the Baton of Hope event.
The list, as his nominators note, simply keeps going.
Over thirty years of connecting business with community, education with industry, and people with opportunity — always with a smile, and apparently the occasional hug.
A volunteer coach at Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC, and one of this year’s most beloved finalists in our Unsung Hero category.
Cheryll began helping at the athletics club in 1994. She became a qualified coach in 1995 and took on the lead coaching of under-11 athletes. This year marks 32 years of her doing exactly that — turning up, every week, for hundreds upon hundreds of young athletes across three decades.
She is approaching 80. She coaches three days a week and attends races most weekends. When the club’s waiting list for under-11s grew too long, she did not shrug and say there was nothing to be done. She started an additional Sunday morning session so more children could get in.
Cheryll was Ben Pattison’s first ever coach. She was also Reece Sharman-Newell’s. She recognised the talent in both athletes long before the rest of the world caught up — and both of them, now competing on the world stage, still greet her with a hug when they see her. That tells you everything about the kind of coach she is.
Beyond her coaching, Cheryll became a qualified field judge, set up the Junior Cross Country League — now in its sixth year as a development pathway for athletes aged seven to nineteen — and has managed teams at the Wessex League for six years, shepherding young athletes through warm-ups, competition nerves, and everything in between.
She has battled skin cancer twice. Her children had to insist she rested. She came back and carried on regardless.
Cheryll Ragan is not just a coach. She is the kind of person who holds a community together without ever asking for the credit.
A Basingstoke resident of Chinese-Malaysian heritage, and one of this year’s most warm-hearted finalists in our Unsung Hero category.
Hiro is the kind of person who, when your car breaks down and you face a five-hour wait alone, invites you somewhere warm, cooks you a meal, and arranges for someone to get you home safely. When you are spending Chinese New Year alone and feeling low, he sets a place for you at his table. That is just who he is.
Every Christmas, Hiro organises festive lunches for over 150 vulnerable and lonely people across Basingstoke — planning for months ahead, coordinating with Social Services, sourcing supplies, recruiting cooks, helpers and drivers, and overseeing every detail right down to the table decorations. He funds much of it himself. He does it because he cannot imagine doing otherwise.
But Christmas is only part of the picture. Through the Rotary Club, Hiro has raised funds for life-saving defibrillators for Basingstoke, with a third currently on the way. He organises the Armed Forces and Veterans Breakfast Club, free for veterans and their spouses. He volunteers for Spotlight charity, runs half marathons for them, and helps organise Christmas toy drives. He cooks for elderly residents living with dementia. He marshalled at vaccination centres throughout COVID. He brings communities together at Diwali celebrations. He supports local businesses and champions local causes.
He has never once asked for recognition.
Hiro moved to England at seventeen, building a life defined entirely by giving back to the community that became his home. Everyone who knows him describes the same thing — the biggest smile in the room, and a generosity that simply never runs dry.
A volunteer with Citizens Advice Tadley & District, and one of this year’s most quietly extraordinary finalists in our Unsung Hero category.
This year, Janette celebrates twenty years of volunteering with Citizens Advice. Twenty years of turning up, sitting down with people in crisis, and helping them find a way through.
Since digital records began in 2017 — covering only the latter half of her service — Janette has personally supported 704 local residents through more than 1,650 interactions, tackling nearly 1,000 unique issues across debt, housing, and benefits. The numbers are remarkable. But they are also, in a sense, beside the point.
What makes Janette exceptional is not the volume of cases she handles. It is the way she handles them. She has a rare and genuine gift for making panicked, vulnerable people feel calm and dignified the moment they walk through the door. For many of the people she sees, that sense of being treated with respect and care — at the very moment they feel they have lost everything — means as much as the practical advice itself.
Her commitment to community extends in every direction. She serves as Chair of Trustees for Home-Start Basingstoke and Deane, supporting young families through some of their hardest early years. She is a Baughurst Parish Councillor. She is a trustee of Heath End Village Hall. Within the Citizens Advice office, colleagues describe her as a wonderful presence — warm, dependable, and capable of bringing genuine joy to even the most pressured of days.
Janette does none of this for recognition. She does it because she believes it needs doing.
Twenty years of quietly building a safety net for the people of this borough.
And the winner is: Hiro Fam
Above & Beyond Award
Sponsored by:
And the finalists are:
A volunteer, a neighbour, a grandfather, and one of this year’s most deeply deserving finalists in our Above and Beyond category.
Chris is 73 and physically disabled. This has never once slowed him down.
This year alone, Chris has completed over 300 hours of voluntary service at the Night Light Winter Shelter — and that is just one of the organisations he gives his time to. He also volunteers with The Safe, the Camrose Centre, the Street Pastors, King’s Church, Good News for Everyone, and the Food Bank. In a previous year, when illness put him in hospital, he continued his volunteer administration work from his hospital bed rather than step back.
If you ask anyone living in poverty in Basingstoke whether they have heard of Chris Clarke-Williams, the answer will be yes. And it will be said with a smile.
But what makes Chris truly remarkable is that his kindness is not something he switches on for a shift and switches off when he goes home. It is simply who he is. He notices the person looking sad on the bus. He stops in the street to help someone in a medical crisis. He visits elderly neighbours he knows may be lonely but too proud to say so. His compassion extends to everyone, without exception, without condition.
He has spent a lifetime in service — volunteering at home and abroad, through raising a family, through his own health challenges, and now into retirement, where he is, by all accounts, busier than ever.
His nominator describes having the privilege of calling him dad.
It is easy to see why.
A Basingstoke-based cleaning company, and one of this year’s most moving finalists in our Above and Beyond category.
This nomination does not begin with a business. It begins with a person at the end of their rope, finding the courage to ask for help.
When one Basingstoke resident reached out to Jade at JM Cleaning Services, she was not simply enquiring about a clean. She was overwhelmed, exhausted, and ashamed of how far things had slipped. Her home reflected the storm she was living through. She was terrified even sending that first message.
When Jade arrived, she saw beyond the mess immediately. There was no judgement. No sharp intake of breath. Only calm, kindness, and the quiet understanding of someone who grasped exactly what this moment meant.
The job was enormous. The quote, everyone expected, would reflect that. Instead, Jade chose to do it for free.
Not for recognition. Not for publicity. Simply because she had decided she was going to help, and that was that. She covered the cost herself, paid her staff, and arrived with her team ready to work. For hours, three women worked with warmth, laughter, and care — and restored not just a kitchen, but the heart of a home.
Jade has spoken about starting her business not just to clean homes, but to make a difference where she can. She described watching the weight lift from her client’s shoulders as priceless.
What she gave that day went far beyond a service. She restored hope. She restored dignity. She helped a woman begin again. In a world where businesses can easily prioritise profit, JM Cleaning Services chose humanity.
Welfare Officer at Old Basing Tennis Club, and a thoroughly deserving finalist in this year’s Above and Beyond category.
Lynn joined Old Basing Tennis Club in 1986. Forty years later, she is still there — still turning up, still rolling up her sleeves, and still making the club a better place for everyone in it.
As Welfare Officer, Lynn takes safeguarding seriously in the truest sense. She keeps abreast of every legislative update from the LTA, ensures the club’s procedures remain fully compliant, and maintains a watchful, caring eye over junior members and vulnerable adults alike. She delivers training, champions fairness, and will not hesitate to step in and defend anyone on the receiving end of poor conduct — on or off the court.
But Lynn’s contribution stretches well beyond her official role. She helps clean the clubhouse and maintain the courts through winter. She assists at junior tournaments, community fetes, and tennis taster sessions for Cubs and Brownies. She contributes food to social evenings, monitors supplies, and quietly takes care of the administrative tasks that keep everything ticking over.
In 2024, her decades of dedication were recognised with an LTA award for outstanding contribution to the club. She is also, it should be noted, an accomplished player who has won the Ladies’ Handicap Doubles trophy on more than one occasion.
Lynn is the kind of person every club, every community, and every committee desperately needs — dependable, principled, practical, and always quietly getting on with it.
Forty years of showing up. We think that deserves celebrating
A volunteer across multiple Basingstoke organisations, and a very worthy finalist in this year’s Above and Beyond category.
If you have spent any time around the voluntary sector in Basingstoke, chances are you have come across Matt. And chances are he was already there before you arrived.
Matt volunteers for the Café Project at The Orchard, The Pink Place cancer charity, the Basingstoke and District Disability Forum — where he also serves as a Trustee — and Basingstoke Voluntary Action, where he turns up for reception cover, football tournaments, quiz nights, and fun days alike. He asks for nothing in return. He is never late. He is, more often than not, early and ready to go before anyone has to ask.
What strikes everyone who works alongside Matt is not just the breadth of his volunteering, but the spirit in which he does it. He is always smiling, always approachable, and always willing to step into whatever gap needs filling — across multiple organisations, on the same day, without complaint or fanfare. In spaces that support vulnerable and isolated people, that warmth and reliability matter enormously.
At The Pink Place he is a familiar face at fundraising events, lending energy and encouragement to everything from indoor quiz nights to outdoor activities. At The Orchard he helps create the kind of welcoming environment that makes people feel safe to walk through the door.Matt does not volunteer for recognition. He volunteers because he genuinely cares about his community and the people in it.In a world where everyone is busy, Matt consistently chooses to show up for others.
And the winner is: Matt Woods
Lifetime Achievement Award
Sponsored by:
And the winners are:
There are people who shape a community quietly, over years, in ways that only become fully visible when you step back and consider the whole. Merv Rees OBE was one of those people. And Basingstoke is immeasurably richer for the life he dedicated to it.
Born in 1950 in the Gwendraeth Valley, South Wales, the son of a coal miner, Merv grew up speaking Welsh as his first language before going on to qualify in medicine at Imperial College London in 1973. From a grammar school in rural Wales to the highest echelons of British surgery — that journey set the tone for everything that followed.
Appointed Consultant Surgeon at Basingstoke Hospital in 1986, Merv chose to build something extraordinary not in a metropolitan teaching hospital, but here — for the people of North Hampshire. When he performed his first liver resection in Basingstoke in 1987, the mortality rate for such operations stood at around 25 per cent. Through relentless innovation, meticulous technique, and an unshakeable belief in what was possible, he helped transform liver surgery into a safe, routine procedure with mortality rates below one per cent. Over his career he personally performed or was centrally involved in more than 4,000 liver resections. He taught a generation of surgeons. He authored more than 140 research articles. He served as President of multiple national surgical bodies and shaped international clinical standards.
He performed his final liver resection on 13 October 2025.
Beyond surgery, Merv founded and served as trustee of the Ark Cancer Charity, providing the vision and leadership to build a centre that places wellbeing at the heart of cancer care in Basingstoke.
Merv passed away shortly after that final operation. He served the NHS for 52 extraordinary years.
For the thousands of patients across Hampshire whose lives he saved — many of whom had nowhere else to turn — and for the community he chose to call home and spent his life serving, we are profoundly honoured to celebrate Merv Rees with this Lifetime Achievement Award.
From a mining valley in Wales to a world-class centre of excellence in Basingstoke. What a life. What a legacy.
Some contributions are loud and visible. Patricia Fox’s has been quiet, consistent, and — over more than two decades — profound.
A Chartered Certified Accountant by profession, Patricia has spent her career using her skills not just in service of her clients, but in service of her community. Since 2005, she has been Treasurer at Home-Start Basingstoke and Deane, and now serves as Vice-Chair — twenty years of careful, dedicated financial stewardship that has helped the charity continue its vital work supporting vulnerable families. That sustained commitment has been part of a wider story of excellence: Home-Start Basingstoke and Deane has since been awarded The King’s Award for Voluntary Service, one of the highest honours available to a voluntary organisation in the UK.
Beyond Home-Start, Patricia has consistently given her time and expertise pro bono to support charities across the voluntary sector, quietly strengthening the foundations of organisations that so many in this community depend upon.
But Patricia’s contribution goes beyond financial expertise. Alongside her late partner Kevin, she created The Fox Folder — a practical and deeply compassionate tool to help people organise their affairs and ensure their wishes are honoured. Born from Kevin’s experience with Multiple Sclerosis, it is the kind of initiative that transforms personal loss into something that supports and comforts others. She also brought Dying Matters to Basingstoke, opening space for honest conversations about death and gently challenging the stigma that too often surrounds it.
As Patricia marks her 60th year, what strikes most is not any single achievement, but the thread that runs through all of them — a quiet, unwavering commitment to making life better for others.
Two decades of service. A community made stronger for it.
Chair of Basingstoke Neighbourcare, and a deeply deserving finalist in this year’s Lifetime Achievement category.
Peter’s contribution to the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector in Basingstoke is one that has been built steadily, selflessly, and with quiet distinction over many years. As Chair of Basingstoke Neighbourcare, he has been a driving force behind the charity’s growth and sustainability — raising its profile, securing vital funding, and ensuring the organisation is well placed to continue supporting the community it serves.
But Peter’s impact extends well beyond any single organisation. His career has spanned the VCSE sector both locally and nationally, and throughout it he has consistently demonstrated what genuine leadership in the voluntary sector looks like — not for recognition or reward, but out of a deep and sustained commitment to community.
What makes Peter’s contribution particularly worthy of a Lifetime Achievement Award is the longevity and consistency of it. Trusteeship of the kind Peter embodies — turning up, year after year, bringing expertise and dedication to organisations that depend on people like him — is the quiet backbone of civil society. It rarely makes headlines. It rarely seeks to. But without it, countless charities and community organisations would simply not survive.
Peter continues to give his time and leadership freely, well into retirement, at a level of commitment that many would find extraordinary. He is, as those who nominated him put it simply and sincerely, a role model — for what can be achieved throughout a working life, and long beyond it, in service of others.
Basingstoke’s voluntary sector is stronger because of Peter Robson.
Some lives are so deeply woven into the fabric of a community that it is almost impossible to imagine the place without them. Trevor Francis is one of those people.
Trevor arrived in Basingstoke in 1967 as part of the Windrush generation, bringing with him resilience, determination, and a quiet commitment to building something lasting. Between 1972 and 1977, he competed in 38 professional boxing contests across multiple weight divisions, claimed the ABA Championship in 1972, and suffered only one defeat — to the legendary Alan Minter. It was a remarkable career by any measure.
But Trevor’s greatest achievement has never been in the ring.
For decades, his gym at 37 Essex Road has been a cornerstone of this community — a place where young people, some as young as eleven, found structure, purpose, and belief in themselves at moments when they needed it most. Under Trevor’s mentorship, countless individuals developed not just athletic ability, but resilience, discipline, and self-respect. Many went on to become coaches themselves, carrying forward the values he instilled. His most personal legacy was his son Dean — British, European, and Commonwealth champion — whose achievements brought Trevor immense pride. Dean’s tragic passing at 44 left a profound loss, but his father’s influence continues to echo through the boxing community and far beyond.
Trevor’s voice has always carried weight beyond sport. In a widely viewed local interview, he urged young people to stand up for their rights, to know their history, and to support one another. His call for unity and his lifelong commitment to community cohesion reflect a man who has spent over fifty years quietly making Basingstoke stronger.
He arrived here in 1967 and he has been lifting this community ever since.
And the winners are all of the above
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