Millie’s Trust wins first place in Vernon’s Community Awards 2020

26 October 2020

The Stockport building society has shared its prize pot among 14 charities

Vernon Building Society has announced this year’s winners of its Community Awards, sharing its £10,000 pot among 14 hugely deserving local organisations.

The Community Awards celebrate Stockport’s amazing charity and not-for-profit sector and has donated over £80,000 to local good causes over the last eight years.

This year Vernon had 66 entries, and the 14 finalists were chosen for their support of communities in Stockport and surrounding areas.

Alexander Deakin, Marketing and Brand Manager, presented the building society’s first digital awards ceremony, and said: “This year’s awards were extra special, with the pandemic making it especially hard for organisations to fundraise.

“All 14 of our finalists are so deserving and we wish we could have celebrated their achievements in person.

“That wasn’t possible this year, so we did the next best thing. On Friday we screened a virtual awards ceremony with all the glitz, glam and Stockport spirit we could muster – dedicated to our amazing winners.”

The winners were announced on Friday night during the glittering awards ceremony, screened via social media, after a record 12,000 votes were cast.

Special guests DJs Fiona Sadler from Imagine Radio and Chellce AJ from Strawberry Radio presented awards and viewers were treated to an exclusive performance of Defying Gravity from Wicked the Musical, by West End star Rebecca Gilliland.

Last year’s winner Millie’s Trust, which provides education and training in first aid, took the top spot again, with Seashell Trust and the Stockport County Community Foundation coming second and third.

Vernon’s Staff Choice Award, which awards an additional £500 of funding, went to Hatters Outreach Providing Essentials, which supports the homeless community across Stockport.

All this year’s worthy winners are listed below:

1. Millie's Trust: £1,500
2. Seashell Trust: £1,250
3. Stockport County Community Foundation: £1,100
4. Hatters Outreach Providing Essentials: £1,000
5. The Cherry Tree Project: £850
6. Bare Necessities Toiletry Bank: £750
7. Together Trust: £750
8. Signpost Stockport for Carers: £600
9. Stockport Mind: £450
10. Pure Innovations: £450
11. Walthew House: £450
12. Easy Peel Studio CIC (Merseyway Workshop): £300
13. Friends of High Lane and Brookside Parks: £300
14. Stockport Pride: £250.
    
    Watch the Vernon Community Awards Ceremony here