Melksham’s inspirational young people recognised

THE young people of Melksham have been recognised for their “outstanding” services within the community at a special awards ceremony last week.

Melksham’s Assembly Hall was packed as people turned out for only the second ever Young People’s Awards Ceremony in Melksham on Wednesday 27th of November.

15 awards were presented to inspirational young people from Melksham and the surrounding area, that acknowledged the work they do in the local community.

The awards night was set up by the charity Extended Services (Melksham Area) who will now aim to continue to make this an annual event.

Chair of Extended Services (Melksham Area) Jon Hubbard said, “The event was fantastic. I think what made it so marvellous is the people of Melksham chose to come out and recognise the achievements of the town’s young people.

“Every single one of the nominees are awesome young people and the whole town should be proud of what they have achieved. There has been some amazing stories and choosing the winners was so so difficult – but that’s the standard we have here in Melksham.”

The event also saw funding confirmed for community projects in Melksham. This included grants for Enigma baton twirling team, Kings Park Academy outdoor learning space, Melksham Oak Woodland Adventure, Kings Park Academy young voices, Kings Park Academy new football kit, The Manor School First Aid Training, Canberra community pantomime, The Manor School Family Gardening Club, The Manor School autism awareness, Melksham Oak Equine assisted learning, The Manor School Forest Schools and Melksham Youth Advisory Group Training.

Amongst those presenting awards was leader of Wiltshire Council cllr Jane Scott; Wiltshire Police Inspector Matt Armstrong; Deputy Mayor of Melksham cllr Terri Welch, Melksham Oak Community School headteacher Stephen Clark, assistant head at Melksham Oak Community School Aidan Blowers and the chair of Melksham Area Board, cllr Jonathon Seed.

Extended Services (Melksham Area) has described the huge achievements of the winners of the awards as follows:-

Individual Arts Award: Lucy Evans. In the last couple of years Lucy has flowered into an outstanding artist with a very individual and effective style. This is due to her motivated and independent attitude. She also offers assistance to her classmates and is a positive influence in the classroom. Because of her outstanding work and her helpfulness in the classroom, Lucy is awarded the Young Individual Arts Award.

School Council Award: Kings Park Academy. The Kings Park Academy School Council is a fantastic school council which is very involved in school decisions and an excellent representation of pupil voice. For this reason Kings Park Academy School Council is presented with the School Council Award.

Young Voice Award: Jordan Green. Although Jordan has a lot of responsibilities at home as a carer, she is a truly positive and happy young lady. She cooks meals at the youth centre as well as at home, and gives her time to a children’s club on Thursdays. She has been elected to the Wiltshire Youth Parliament and is determined to make the county a better place for young people, whatever their circumstances. She is working on improving pathways to and from schools and improving street lighting in dark places. She is a great cook, is always nice to people even when she is having a bad day, she is helpful to her friends and family and is always positive, no matter what. Because of these reasons and her continuous inspiration to everyone around her, Jordan is awarded the Young Voice Award.

Sporting Team Award: Seend Netball Club. The Seend Netball Club is a dedicated team who practise weekly after school come rain or shine. Their commitment has seen them go from the bottom of Division 3 to Division 2 in their Devizes league. All of them show excellent team spirit, encouraging each other to play their best, even when they are losing games. For this reason the Seend Netball Club are rewarded with the Sporting Team Award

Sporting Individual Award: Will Stockley. At primary school, it was clear that Will showed great sporting potential. He delights in football, rugby and cricket but his real focus in the last year has been running. In 2012 Will ranked number 1 in the UK for his 5k time and in 2013 he came first in several races including Wiltshire County Championships, the Avon League and the EA SW Championships. For his commitment to training, for not giving up when it gets tough, and for supporting others with their events, the Sporting Individual Award goes to Will Stockley.

Young Leader Award: Sally Crudge. Sally is an outstanding leader. She was a key member of the School Council until summer 2013 and is now one of the 4 house leaders in year 13. She organised a Sports Day for a special school and is completing the gold Duke of Edinburgh Award. As House Leader in Melksham Oak, Sally has led assemblies, and whole school sports events. She has organised her peers and younger students to work together to compete and achieve to the best of their ability.  For her inspirational leadership Sally has been chosen to receive the Young Leader Award.

Volunteering Award: Jack Oatley. Jack is an inspirational young man, giving his time to the Youth Development Centre as a peer leader, supporting the Forest Community Centre and becoming part of the Melksham Youth Advisory Group. Jack has given 3 nights a week to help with the running of the youth centre, being a role model to the members, helping with publicity and planning activities.

He has taken the initiative in many projects including helping in the Melksham Oak School fete, the Melksham Carnival and creating a consultation on the campus for young people. Jack has helped at the Forest Community Centre with painting, cleaning, maintaining the football pitch and helping build the structure of the centre. For his continuous selfless dedication to his local community, the Volunteering Award goes to Jack Oatley.

Young Carer Award (11 and under): Jemma Burchell. Jemma always gives lots of support to her mum who is disabled, fetching and carrying drinks, snacks and medicines. She helps with keeping the house clean and looks after her little step-brother. Even though Jemma has gone through the traumatic experience of being bitten by a dog, she never lets things get her down and her sunny positive nature helps her mum get through the tough times. For this reason Jemma is awarded the 11 years and under Young Carer Award.

Young Carer Award (12 – 18): Nicole Turk. Nicole is 18 years old and the youngest of four siblings in a family where both parents are disabled. Although all four have helped to care for their parents, Nicole is the only one still at home, cooking, cleaning and caring for her parents. She has now started work in the caring industry as she wants to care for people as well as her parents. For her selfless inspiring commitment to caring, Nicole is awarded the 12 – 18 year old Young Carer Award.

Outstanding Achiever (11 and Under): Abbie Dark. Abbie has been in and out of hospital since birth. She has had countless operations and is often in considerable pain; she is also vulnerable to infections, all of which has resulted in her missing large chunks of her education. Despite this Abbie works so hard and is not only keeping up with her peers, she is excelling.  She is confident, positive and driven and she never complains. Abbie wants to be a surgeon when she grows up. At the start of each academic year she does a presentation to her class and teachers, educating them about her condition. Now in year 6, her friendliness and maturity have earned her the role of prefect. For her courage, determination, strength and positive attitude, Abbie is presented with the award of 11 years and under Young Achiever.

Outstanding Achiever Award (12 – 18): Elliot Burbidge. Elliot has been a competitive Judo player since the age of 8, continuing to produce outstanding results over the past 2 years. In 2012 he won silvers in the West of England open and gold in the National Schools Championships. In 2013 he won silvers in the London Opens and Northern Ireland Opens. He also again won gold in the National Schools Championships. For his outstanding commitment to his sport, Elliot is awarded the 12 – 18 Outstanding Achiever Award.

Young Achiever (11 and Under): Pharell Gilling. Pharell is 7 years old and was recently diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. This has changed the lives of his whole family. He has to have constant finger pricks to check his blood sugars and five injections a day to keep him alive. His whole independence has been taken away and he struggles every day with his condition, but he is showing great bravery every day to cope with it. His bravery is an inspiration to his family and others and for this reason Pharell is awarded the Young Achiever Award.

Young Achiever Award (12 – 18): Luke Molter. In June, Luke suffered a fractured skull after falling off his bike, which led to a blood clot on the brain. Luke made an amazing recovery and insisted that he return to school only two weeks after his operation. Although teachers were apprehensive about Luke’s return, he continued to give it is best shot. Luke did have to go home early on some days due to the side effects of the operation, however, he always retuned the following day with a smile on his face. Luke is an excellent example of how you can still ‘achieve’ even after such a traumatic experience. For this reason Luke is awarded the 12-18 year old Young Achiever Award.

Chairman’s Outstanding Contribution to Melksham by a Group Award: Melksham Youth Advisory Group. The Melksham Youth Advisory Group is made of representatives of youth groups and schools in the Melksham area and highlights issues and concerns for young people. Meeting regularly and supported by local dignitaries the YAG has achieved so much in its short career so far. They have created a litter pick DVD aimed at preventing littering among young people and addressing the litter problems in Melksham. With funding secured from the area board, the YAG created their second DVD about mental health awareness. Discussing topics that are usually avoided, the group has outlined issues that young people might face and where they can get help and advice. For their creative work in this area the YAG is awarded the Young Team Award.

Chairman’s Award for Outstanding Contribution to Melksham by an Individual: Jack Oatley. Jack is an inspirational young man, giving his time to the Youth Development Centre as a peer leader, supporting the Forest Community Centre and becoming part of the Melksham Youth Advisory Group. Jack has given 3 nights a week to help with the running the youth centre, being a role model to the members, helping with publicity and planning activities.

He has taken initiative in many projects including helping in the Melksham Oak School fete, the Melksham Carnival and creating a consultation on the campus for young people. Jack has helped at the Forest Community Centre with painting, cleaning, maintaining the football pitch and helping build the structure of the centre. Jack receives his award for his continuous selfless dedication to his local community.