Photos: Unsung heroes of Torbay celebrated at inaugural Community Champion Awards

Photos by MiraclePR

Never has recognition been so well deserved than at the first-ever Torbay Community Champion Awards. 

In a packed room of well over 100 guests, sponsors and nominees, Torbay’s unsung heroes were celebrated with awards across ten categories at Paignton’s Redcliffe Hotel. 

The afternoon was organised by the Torbay Weekly and Torbay Communities, which is also celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The afternoon was hosted by Torbay Weekly Editor and Torbay Communities Trustee Jim Parker and Torbay Communities Marketing and Communications Lead David Gledhill. 

Jim Parker said: “This event is about celebrating our stars from the Bay’s voluntary, community, and social enterprise sectors. 

“You all do amazing things out in the community—sometimes game-changing, even life-saving, things. But you don’t like shouting about it; you just get on with it. You don’t like being in the spotlight, but tough, because we want to give you your moment of glory, your recognition, as we salute and thank you, our unsung heroes.”

Each award category was individually sponsored by: Torbay Council, MP Steve Darling, the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Hamling Engineering, Torquay United, Wollens Solicitors, South West Water, Cantina Kitchen and Bar, the Torbay Weekly and Torbay Health and Wellbeing Voluntary Sector Network. 

Director of Torbay Communities Tracey Cabache said: “Thank you to our sponsors who 

The awards received over 200 entries, making the judging a tough exercise. 

“The response to the awards has been mind-blowing,“ Jim added.

“Shortlisting finalists and winners was an impossible task for the judges. Nominations were heart-warming, their stories humbling—everyone a winner in their own right. I can promise next year will be even bigger and better as we celebrate the Bay’s vast and vibrant army of volunteers and voluntary sector workers.”

The awards were as follows: 

Carer of the Year (Steve Darling MP)
Nominees: Georgina Page and Rachael Noad
Winner: Kevin Helmore was crowned Carer of the Year. Kevin is a full-time unpaid carer, who wants to help get the voice of the Learning Disabled community heard in Torbay as well as help to improve things for the people who are Learning Disabled. He helped other unpaid Carers with The Big Plan, as well as sitting as a Carers Rep on The Learning Disability Partnership Board and the committee of Torbay Mencap and represents them on various forums, sits on the trust’s Treat Me Well group and has for many years been a volunteer for Healthwatch.

Climate and Environment Champion of the Year (Cantina Kitchen & Bar)
Nominees: Megan Hart and Play Torbay
Winner: Cricketfield Community Garden won the Environmental Champion of the Year Award. A friendly, welcoming, and safe space in Hele, this community garden regularly hosts school visits, where groups of 15-30 children learn about bugs, herbs, and gardening. Each group participates in activities like planting or watering before swapping roles and enjoying a drink and biscuit. Schools also maintain their own plots. Referrals come from local organisations such as Social Prescribers and Support Workers, allowing individuals with mental or physical health issues to participate. This year, an Educational Shed and four rescue chickens were added. The garden uses organic methods, recycling gifts and waste from local sources. During the warmer months, it hosts mostly free events for the community, including bake sales and crafting sessions, raising funds while showcasing the garden's potential.

Emergency Worker of the Year (Office of the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner)
Nominees: Jackie Williams and Paul Northey
Winner: Angie Manning was the well-deserved winner of the Emergency Worker of the Year Award. Angie supports victims of Domestic Abuse and triages them to helpful groups and services. She provides an incredible service for people in Torbay in need of guidance around a wide range of social issues and connects individuals to the best support for them. Angie always centres the individual in any support she arranges, and is so quick to help. She uses her expertise to support the community in a way that makes a massive difference both to services and to members of the community. 

Good Neighbour of the Year (South West Water)
Nominees: Mervyn Booker and Pauline Baker
Winner: Jess Gane won this year’s Good Neighbour Award. Jess is a busy young mother of four and a business owner, and she still finds time to get to know and help her neighbours. She is devoted to improving her local community for all who live there. 
She bakes cakes for neighbours' birthdays, knocks on the door of newcomers and invites them to coffee and events. She also organises BBQs and invites all her neighbours around so they can get to know each other. She does her neighbours' shopping when they are sick, gives them lifts and goes with them to appointments when they need support. Everyone knows Jess in Melville.

Health and Wellbeing Champion (Torbay Council)
Nominees: Cycle Torbay and Youth Mental Health Foundation
Winner: Bryan Pitman won the Health and Wellbeing Award. About 4 years ago, Bryan set up the Brixham Rugby Club’s Looseheads mental health well-being group after a tragic incident when one of the First team players took his own life. 
Bryan now has a large team of volunteers that work with him from all sections from the youth to the senior teams and the wider club. He has through educating, communicating, sharing and encouraging all players and visitors to the club to be much more open about their own mental health. 

Volunteer of the Year (Hamling Engineering)
Nominees: Zara Oldfield, Nicola Parham and Carol Pearson
Winner: Barbara Sutton was announced the winner of the Volunteer of the Year Award. Barbara (Babs) volunteers her time for two different voluntary groups - she is a committee member of Children's Week (Torbay) and their Craft Lead, and she is a Brown Owl of a brownie pack in Torquay. For Children’s Week (Torbay) - Babs takes on the sole responsibility of organising and running the Craft Tent - she spends the entire year. Researching, sourcing and creating over 2000+ craft activities for children to do during their August event. For Girl Guiding - she runs her pack and organises everything, giving up her time to run weekly sessions, organise activities and outings and do everything a leader does.

Volunteering Team of the Year (Wollens)
Nominees: Phoenix Rising and Torquay United Supporters’ Trust
Winner: H.M. Coastguard Rescue Team won the Volunteering Team of the Year. Torbay Rescue Coastguard Team volunteers help rescue people fallen/taken ill on coastal paths, are trapped on cliffs, cut off from tides or struggling in the water. They also undertake a number of other duties such as staffing helicopter landing sites, assisting police in searching for vulnerable/missing people or attending reports of possible unexploded ordnance on beaches. Plus giving safety advice to seafarers. 
The team attend around 150 plus incidents a year and their impact keeping the coast safe is essential. The team are all employed or self-employed and regularly leave their jobs to attend incidents and drop everything they are doing e.g. leaving in the middle of mealtimes with the family or in the middle of the night when it's cold, wet and windy to attend incidents.

Young Volunteer of the Year (Torquay United Supporters’ Trust):
Nominees: Lucy Harvey and Abbi Hall
Winner: For Leighton Rose-Jarrett, this award certainly was a surprise. Leighton is five years old and is a super litter picker. She completed a 30-day litter pick in aid of Animals in Distress around school, away on holiday in Cornwall, in the wind & rain & even when she lost her dear guinea pig. As of this nomination, she had raised £1,150! Despite finishing her 30 days she immediately declared that she would be carrying on until Christmas. Through her work, Leighton has helped to make our streets and our planet a little bit cleaner.

Lifetime Award (Torbay Weekly)
Nominees: Pat Goss, Louise Gilson and Eileen Deacon
Winner: Norman McNamara, better known as Norms, won the Torbay Weekly’s Lifetime Award. Norms has been an international advocate making a major impact around the world. The Purple Angel program has ambassadors worldwide advocating to improve dementia care. 

Norms has started an amazing MP3 program that offers calmness to many, reducing anxiety, and bringing joy and hope back to individuals living with dementia, as well as their families and the professionals who care for them. He started the World Rocks Against Dementia WRAD - a musical program that has also gone international raising awareness and funds to improve dementia care. Norms have helped expand the Memory Cafes as well. He has inspired so many people globally to step up and step in to make a difference. His ability to communicate the true needs of those living with dementia and their families hits home with professionals and families. He has authored books and created more collaborations than most on a shoestring budget. He is recognised around the world for the difference he has made.

Special recognition was given to Torbay Food Alliance, Torbay’s Covid vaccination team and Torbay Community Helpline, in the form of surprise awards for their contribution to the community. 

Giving the awards, Jim Parker said: “This is an extra special award and something the judges were more than worthy of recognising. 

“Nobody will forget the true nightmare of COVID-19, which brought lockdowns, loneliness, anxiety, fear, and in some sad cases, grief to our doorstep. But the pandemic was also the moment Torbay stepped up as a community.
“We refused to be beaten, and it was with the help of some people and organisations in particular that we won that fight—people who helped us beat COVID and the deadly threat it posed. These are just a few who deserve special recognition for being there when we needed them most.”

Following Torbay communities’ Annual General Meeting, the final award, the Community Champion of 2024 was decided by the many other champions in the room. Each guest had one vote to choose which category winner they thought was most deserving. 

After the votes were counted, Norman McNamara narrowly won the vote, becoming the first Community Champion in a ceremony which is now hoped to be held annually from now on. 

On winning, Norman said: “It’s been an amazing evening, I can’t stop smiling. Hearing the stories of everyone in this room has been incredible. What an amazing afternoon.”