QUEEN'S AWARD FOR VOLUNTARY SERVICE NOMINATIONS
(24 August 2004)

The time is almost up for members of the public to nominate their local voluntary group or community orgnanisation to receive the prestigious Queen's Award for Voluntary Service. This highly prestigious, annual Award is designed to give well-deserved recognition to those who volunteer their time and energy to help others. The Award is special because it is for the group as a whole rather than individuals.

Now in its third year, the Award was created to mark the occasion of The Queen's Golden Jubilee. Over 300 groups have received the Award, including many ethnic minority organisations such as, The Greenwich Chinese Community School, The Centre for Filipinos in London, the Central Gurudwara Singh Sabha in Glasgow, the Salford Link Project in Manchester and the Arab Group in Hounslow.

Home Office Minister, Fiona Mactaggart, said:"Groups from ethnic minority communities have a proud history of voluntary activity. They should use this opportunity to put themselves forward. I hope that they will be encouraged by this chance to promote their work and create a greater understanding and appreciation of the contribution of Britain's diverse communities to our society.

Community and voluntary groups can be nominated for an Award by members of the public, who have either benefited from their work, or seen the positive effects on the community. Self-nomination is not permitted. A successful group will have demonstrated that it:

• evolved locally and is locally run;
• has a proven track record of active community involvement, normally over a period of three years or more;
• is well designed to meet a particular need;
• adds significant value by directly providing community-focused voluntary activities of a very high quality; and
• generates a high level of local goodwill and respect.

Further details on entrance criteria and the nomination process are available from www.queensawardvoluntary.gov.uk.The nomination period runs until 30 September 2004.

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