WAVERLEY volunteers were among the supporters of 18 Surrey charities and organisations nominated for the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service 2017, who received an official ‘thank you’ at a special reception at Loseley Park.

Hosted by the Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey, Michael More-Molyneux, and sponsored by Surrey County Council, the event recognised the outstanding contribution made by the army of unsung heroes whose dedicated volunteering keeps local communities alive.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service is the equivalent of an MBE for volunteers and is the highest honour given to volunteers.

“The names of those nominees who will receive the coveted Queen’s Award this year won’t be announced publicly until June 2,” said the chairman of Surrey County Council, Sally Marks.

“But irrespective of ultimate winners and losers in Surrey (and we hope they are all winners), this reception is about recognising those groups that have been nominated and then reached the local panel assessment stage, and to thank them for all that they do for our county through their volunteering.”

The awards are divided into eight categories. Among the nominees, Farnham ASSIST is nominated for the social centre/community category; Normandy’s Therapy Garden volunteers in the self help/support category; and Surrey Wildlife Trust and Surrey Playing Fields Association in the environment and regeneration category.

Speaking to volunteers at the event, Michael More-Molyneux said: “Thank you for your hard work, your perseverance, your commitment to the cause, and your desire to help those less fortunate than ourselves.

“I hope you realise how much your work is valued by us all in Surrey. If it were not for our county’s voluntary sector, a large number of charities and good causes would simply not exist.”

Representatives from each of the 18 nominated groups were photographed with the Lord-Lieutenant and vice Lord-Lieutenant, Bill Biddell, who chairs the Local Assessment Panel in Surrey. It is made-up of eight experienced assessors and an editor who, between them, visited every nominated group between October and December 2016 before sending their findings to the National Award Committee.

He recognised the outstanding work of the volunteers present, saying: “You all work inventively and intriguingly throughout the county and should be extremely proud of what you do and achieve. To have got this far is a great feather in your cap.”

Any Surrey groups honoured with a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2017 will be invited to send representatives to a royal garden party this summer.

The award itself – a certificate signed by the Queen and a domed glass crystal – will be presented by the Lord-Lieutenant or a Deputy Lieutenant to each winning group later in the year.

Surrey residents across the county are now being actively encouraged to nominate groups of unsung heroes for the Queen’s Awards for Voluntary Service 2018, the highest award given to volunteers across the UK.

They have until September 15 to submit their choices. Full details of how to go about it and a nomination form are available online from the website www.gov.uk/queens-award-for-voluntary-service.