Kentish Express Ashford & District
Night to recognise great and the good
Kent Charity Awards judges have announced the organisations, volunteers and trustees who make up this year’s finalists.
They will be invited to attend a gala awards evening on Thursday, June 13, at the Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone, where the winners will be revealed.
The event is now in its fifth year, and the standard of entries has been described as “extremely high”, with “great diversity” among applicants.
Finalists in the Community Charity category are Stride4Life, which supports the Cancer Fighting Fund at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford; the Kent Autistic Trust; East Kent’s Oasis Domestic Abuse Service; and homeless charity Catching Lives, based in Canterbury.
In the Best Use of Volunteers category, the finalists are Home-Start Medway, Medway Foodbank and The Family Trust, a small children’s charity based in Maidstone.
Finalists in the Care Charity category are Canterbury-based homeless charity Porchlight, Maidstone’s Heart of Kent Hospice and hospice charity ellenor, based in Northfleet.
In the start-up category, new for 2019, finalists include Canterbury’s Big Reveal, which helps introduce people to music and performing arts opportunities; Smarden-based Hypo Hounds, which trains assistance dogs for people with Type 1 diabetes; Child’s Vision, which helps children in Swale affected by domestic abuse; and The Hygiene Bank, Sevenoaks, which provides toiletries for those facing financial hardship.
The judges’ Contribution to Kent finalists are Herne Bay’s Wildwood Trust, which protects native British wildlife; Air Ambulance Kent Surrey and Sussex, based at Rochester Airport; and Royal British Legion Industries, based in Aylesford, which supports members of the ex-service community.
Finalists in the Children’s Charity category include Dandelion Time, based in East Farleigh, The Young Lives Foundation, which supports disadvantaged children across Kent, and disabled children’s charity We Are Beams in Dartford.
In the Disability Charity of the Year category, finalists are East Kent Mencap, which provides opportunities for those with learning disabilities, Tunbridge Wells Mental Health Resource and Spadework in Offham, which provides specialist training for disabled people, allowing them to live with dignity and purpose in the community.
Finalists for Trustee of the Year include Megan Mckay, of Cherished Gowns, Tony Hillier, of The Family Trust, Rod Black, of Step and Learn Conductive Education and George Harvey, of Spadework.
Finalists for Volunteer of the Year are Roger Judge, of Royal British Legion Industries, Lil Smith, of Pilgrims’ Hospice Thanet, David Burridge of The Big Reveal and Mike Clark, of Broadstairs Town Garden Team.
The awards are sponsored by Kreston Reeves, Furley Page, MidKent College, CAF Bank, Kent County Council, Medway Council, CC Works, Kent Community Foundation, Diggerland, The Kent Messenger Group and Arriva.