Nusrat Ghani, MP for Sussex Weald, is pleased to be joining the judging panel for this year's BBC Make a Difference Awards in Surrey and Sussex.
The awards have been running for 14 years and recognise individuals and groups who make a difference to people living locally. The Make a Difference Awards is a BBC initiative to honour community champions across eight different categories. Nusrat will be judging the community group category.
In 2024, Sussex Weald had a finalist and a winner.
- Dawn Stephen won the Great Neighbour award. Dawn, from Crowborough, lost her husband, Bill, the previous year and since then she’s spearheaded a campaign to raise money for many defibrillators in the area. She’s also a landlady of the local pub and organises regular charity events and her patrons say she offers a place of refuge for all local people.
- Rachael Gibson from Young at Heart, in Heathfield was Highly Commended in the Community categoryand one of four finalists out of hundreds of nominees. Rachael was a founder of “Young at Heart, Heathfield”, an intergenerational club which works with elderly people and the local primary school. The main aim is to combat isolation and loneliness with members hearing children read, supporting their school topics, bingo and tea dancing as well as cooked lunch and transport.
Nusrat Ghani said: "It's a fantastic way of recognising brilliant people and gives us a moment to say thank you."
Nusrat spoke to BBC Sussex Radio presenter Danny Pike to promote the awards and call for nominations before the deadline. You can listen to the interview via the video above.
To nominate someone go to the Make a Difference Awards site, with nominations closing at 17:00 BST on 31 March.
