Why should this person win this award?
Amy is an amazing, community-focused, passionate individual who did that rarest of things – saw a problem that affected the entire community, and made real personal sacrifice to do something about it.

Amy has been community volunteering since arriving in Bristol in 2010, but she really decided to take things to an entirely different level when she - dismayed by the loneliness in the region and the limited activity to deal with it - decided to launch her own charity to take direct action.

That charity - Marmalade Trust, launched in 2014 - set out to find lonely people and help build their confidence and reconnect them to friends and communities. Small at first, they are now at a point where they have hundreds of volunteers and a staff of interns - they survive entirely on fundraising and are very socially active - their Christmas day lunches are amazing!

Please tell us the impact of this person on their neighbourhood or the city
Amy has touched and positively changed the lives of so many lonely people who are at a stage in their life where they thought that society had forgotten about them. From individuals who had outlived friends and family, or lost a spouse, to those who had lost the skills and confidence to sustain social contact - many of these people just presumed that loneliness was their new way of life.

Amy changed that, and is finding more and more people to help the charity each year. Beyond that, she is also raising the issue in the minds of donors, partners and volunteers - helping to remove the stigma from loneliness in future generations

She believes that discussion and awareness is good, but action is better – and is constantly identifying new ways to address loneliness.

Please tell us about this person's volunteering activity, campaigning or other activity
Amy has always volunteered in Bristol, and in fact still volunteers for Contact the Elderly whilst running Marmalade Trust!

As part of running Marmalade she regularly speaks at local events to raise awareness of loneliness - Bristol Junior Chambers, various local groups, Clifton Club and has appeared on BBC to talk about the charity. She speaks with local politicians, including the city and lord mayor, and stays in touch with local MPs to keep loneliness on the agenda. She recently secured continued membership of the Bristol entrepreneurial accelerator (E-Spark) where she is able to share ideas with the most promising young entrepreneurs in the city.

Why should this person win this award?
Annie has given countless hours of her time to set up South Bristol Toy Library to give all families access to low cost high quality toys. She is passionate about play and child development as well as building community around reusing and sharing resources. She got the idea of the toy library from a trip away and tried to find something in Bristol and when she couldn't find it she decided to set one up herself. Then followed two years of hard work as a volunteer to establish the library as a fantastic resource for children in South Bristol. Today, the library runs twice a fortnight and has over 200 members and over 30 regular volunteers. She is so kind, dedicated and passionate about improving life chances for all children and she really deserves recognition.

Please tell us the impact of this person on their neighbourhood or the city
Annie has made an impact on families in South Bristol by providing them with a wide range of toys to hire for a very affordable price and offered from a welcoming and inclusive play and swap session. Toys are expensive and children get bored or they clutter up homes and use lots of resources - the idea of sharing and reusing toys in a community of families who use the library has really taken off. Over the past two years the library has gone from strength to strength with new members joining and new volunteers helping out. There are so many children in the neighbourhood and the library offers parents an affordable place to take their child and help them grow. The moto of the library is 'play, share and grow' and that is the impact Annie is having for children in South Bristol.

Please tell us about this person's volunteering activity, campaigning or other activity
Annie's volunteering has been setting up the library from the early days of having a few bikes and scooters lent from her home to today having fortnightly sessions with over 200 members, 30 volunteers and 500 toys loaned over the past two years. We have over 400 toys in the library and sessions are attended by an average of 25 people. The next phase of Annie's ambition is to reach those families who are struggling to make ends meet and might not be able to attend sessions or feel comfortable or confident to use the library, by offering a bespoke service following outreach to identify the type of project that would work. She really wants to make toys and play accessible for all children and build a strong community around the library. She is such a warm hearted and unassuming person who would never seek recognition but she really has put her heart and soul into the library as well as having a busy home life.

Why should this person win this award?
Derek is a wonderful person who has so much energy and compassion for older people learning about computers/the internet in Knowle West. He is a reserved man but uses his patience and often his smile to help raise the confidence and ability of others.

Please tell us the impact of this person on their neighbourhood or the city

Derek is part of a small team offering a computer class for older people in Knowle west. 8-10 local people relay on the class to learn and to remain connected to friends and family abroad. Derek has built a real bond with the class attendees and the staff at KWMC. He is invaluable to us and we are grateful for his commitment and passion for helping others learn and enjoy technology.

Please tell us about this person's volunteering activity, campaigning or other activity

Derek volunteers weekly at our computer class for older people. He's committed to this for several years and we simply couldn't run the class without his support. He is caring, patient and a champion for getting older people online and using technology to connect with others.

Why should this person win this award?
Judith Davis is like the beating heart of St Paul’s, an area in which she lives, works and volunteers. Judith has served on many committees and supports a number of organisations for the benefit of the communities in St Paul’s. She is a champion, particularly for young people and elders and often for those in between!

She is a stalwart who will rise to the challenge and put her name forward when need is there. She does this because she won’t sit by and let opportunities be wasted that could be of benefit to people or the area.

While she has also worked with young people and elders, her passion for helping people to improve their life opportunities means she is always willing to go over and above; such as being a mentor to young people. She does this without ego or self-promotion.

Please tell us the impact of this person on their neighbourhood or the city
Judith is committed to fostering and maintaining community connections. She is constantly involved in outreach in her community. She has used arts, learning and family projects to support people to improve their well-being or their voice to have their say.

She has served as a role model and mentor for young people in St Paul’s, and beyond, by encouraging them to take up activities which they would not have perceived themselves to be doing; the impact is that they gain a belief in themselves and grow in confidence.

She has also encouraged elders to think beyond their boundaries has enabled them to take up new interests that widens their horizons and injects a more youthful outlook.

Her belief in opportunity, fairness and that people matter most is at the forefront in everything she does and is a driver for her activism.

Please tell us about this person's volunteering activity, campaigning or other activity
She has served as an advocate for Voscur, she has taken up trusteeships with Circle and the St Paul’s Carnival committee, a key contributor and distributor of Vocalise magazine for the area, she has served in a voluntary capacity on local partnership boards, and she supports many informal networks to thrive.

Judith is a tireless campaigner and once she has committed her support she is like a dog with a bone – whether it is ensuring Carnival remains in St Paul’s or resisting gentrification of the area – Judith is on it! She does not stand back from challenging local agencies when she sees that their services or practices will be of detriment to any group or community in St
Paul’s.

As a local resident she is well respected by all – and what we see on the surface is only the tip of all that she does.

Why should this person win this award?
Gillian Flowers created the Bristol Community Friendship Club to end loneliness in all areas around Bristol. This group, set-up on Facebook, was created for women of all ages to meet up and make new friends. To date this group has helped over 600 ladies. Gill volunteers all her spare time to support the ladies in the group by organising multiple events, activities and day trips on a weekly basis. She believes no-one should be lonely.

Please tell us the impact of this person on their neighbourhood or the city
Gillian supports women all across Bristol to end loneliness by providing daily activities including meals, yoga, bowls, plus arts and craft activities. She is very welcoming to all new members and supports them with transport to all of the events and encourages new members to meet up in their local area. The ladies of the group gain a morale boost and confidence which encourages them to get out and be sociable to end their loneliness.

Please tell us about this person's volunteering activity, campaigning or other activity
Gillian encourage feel good events with yoga and Tai Chi which supports the ladies physical health. She creates Quiz evenings which fulfils their social needs and supports mental well-being, Also she encourages artistic creativity by doing lots of art and craft activities.