Home-Start in Suffolk receives The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service

Home-Start in Suffolk Volunteers, who provide vital support to families across Suffolk, have been honoured with The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK.

The organisation has been supporting families throughout the county through one-to-one support and group activities for more than 22 years, helping families as they navigate through challenging circumstances. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic the team adapted their support services to provide virtual and telephone support to ensure families still had the support they needed during such an extremely difficult time.

Home-Start in Suffolk is one of 241 charities, including 5 in our County of Suffolk, social enterprises, and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of nominations remains high year on year, showing that the voluntary sector is thriving and full of innovative ideas to make life better for those around them.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by volunteer groups to benefit their local communities. It was created in 2002 to celebrate The Queen’s Golden Jubilee. Recipients are announced each year on 2nd June, the anniversary of The Queen’s Coronation. Award winners this year are wonderfully diverse. They include volunteer groups from across the UK, including Home-Start in Suffolk for their support of families, an inclusive tennis club in Lincolnshire; a children’s bereavement charity in London and a support group for those living with dementia and their carers in North Yorkshire.

Representatives of Home-Start in Suffolk will receive the award crystal and certificate from Clare Fitzroy, Countess of Euston, Lord-Lieutenant of Suffolk, later this summer. Furthermore, two volunteers from Home-Start in Suffolk will attend a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May 2022 (depending on restrictions at the time), along with other recipients of this year’s Award.

Tara Spence, Home-Start in Suffolk’s CEO said “We are beyond delighted that our amazing volunteers have been nominated for this honour and absolutely thrilled they have been selected to receive such a prestigious award.  We are so proud of our incredible team of more than 270 volunteers who provide such a vital support to so many Suffolk families.  This is such a wonderful achievement and is well-deserved recognition of the commitment and dedication that our volunteers have towards the wellbeing of families in our County.”

Volunteer Ali said “As a volunteer I’m so excited and thrilled by this phenomenal achievement. Everyone within the organisation is so passionate about what we do.  Pride and compassion run deep through the whole team and we are united in our common goal to support families across Suffolk.  I am so proud and feel very privileged to be part of such an incredible team.  I find volunteering is like baking a cake, you get out what you put in and this award and the recognition of the work of Home-Start in Suffolk volunteers is the icing on the perfect cake.”

To find out more about Home-Start in Suffolk visit: www.homestartinsuffolk.org