Beverley and District Talking Newspaper was honoured for its work in the community at the East Riding of Yorkshire Council Chairman’s Awards.
They were named joint winners in the Chairman’s Community Award, along with Hull and East Riding Arthritis Care, at last night’s award ceremony at Bridlington Spa.
David Allan, of the Beverley and District Talking Newspaper, said the award meant a great deal, and he hoped it would lead to more chances to raise money for this most worthy of organisations.
David said: “It is an honour to get nominated as there are so many worthy causes out there and we were delighted to find out we were joint winners.
“We started in March 2008 after finding out that no talking newspaper existed for Beverley. It isn’t just a newspaper, it is a magazine, with quizzes, short stories and lots of humour.
“The award will help validate our service and will hopefully help us raise money for materials to keep going.”
Volunteers from the talking newspaper record and distribute free audio CDs every week to the blind or partially sighted. Content is taken from local publications, as well as topical advice, special interviews and information on how to live with sight loss.
Each CD lasts approximately 70 minutes and are currently distributed to 113 listeners. The volunteers spend hours every week carrying out fundraising, compiling the programme, recording and editing and dispatching the CDs to the listeners.
The awards were one of the last official events to be hosted by Councillor David Rudd, before he hands over the reins of the chairman’s office to Councillor Kay West.
Councillor Rudd, chairman of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, hailed the evening as a huge success and praised the winners for their outstanding achievements.
He said: “I would like to congratulate all the award winners. They are all local people who have made a significant contribution to the East Riding.
“Their success shows the level of good work going on in the East Riding and what a vibrant place it is.”
