First ever Community Champion Awards are a massive success

24th July 2023

The first ever Northern Leaders Trust’s Community Champion Awards have proved a massive success, with seven outstanding young people, all from Newcastle schools, each picking up an award.

Community Champion Awards

Guest speakers, Chi Onwurah, Labour MP for Newcastle Central, and Naomi Riches MBE, Paralympic gold medal winner, shared their personal stories and the barriers they faced on their own paths to success.

Nominees, parents, carers, and friends along with Lee Kirtley, CEO of Northern Leaders Trust (NLT), and special guests, gathered at Kenton School for the glittering awards ceremony. 

The event was supported by local businesses with the key sponsor being Mike Grahamslaw of Northern Insight magazine.  Each award winner received £150 of retail vouchers, a £50 book token, an engraved trophy, a certificate, and a goody bag.

Thanking young people

Lee Kirtley, CEO of Northern Leaders Trust said:

“I wanted to launch these awards because young people make extraordinary contributions to their communities every day and they so often go unnoticed.  I wanted to create the opportunity to acknowledge the kindness, care and support that they give to others. It is heartening to see so many young people who have shown exceptional dedication, compassion and resilience in making a positive difference in their communities. Together, we can create a more inclusive, compassionate and supportive world for our young people.  This is just the first Community Champion awards – we plan to continue running them for years to come. I would also particularly like to thank our seven award sponsors tonight for their generous support.”

Northern Leaders Trust is a Schools North East Partner Trust. If you’d like to find out more about our Partner School Programme click here.

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