Leicestershire First is a new charity established to promote the values of leadership, excellence and citizenship. It was officially launched on June 6, 2008, at County Hall in Leicestershire.
The charity will celebrate and acknowledge the achievements of Leicestershire people who through their endeavours help their fellow citizens and the community as a whole.
Each year nine inspirational Leicestershire citizens will be given £3,000 each to donate to Leicestershire charities of their choice. By putting the prize money to good use, the positive effects of giving will be reinforced.
Its founders, Maurice and Vivien Thompson, want Leicestershire First to be a force for good in Leicester and the county. Maurice said: “By giving these prizes, we want to show the citizens of Leicestershire what great things are done by so many people who live among us and how giving – whether it is your time, money, skills, etc – benefits us all.”
The next three awards, to be given in the autumn, will be for a Young Achiever, a Community Builder and for a Contribution to the Protection or Improvement of the Environment.
The people of Leicestershire are invited to nominate potential winners of these awards before September 24, 2008. The winners are expected to be announced in the Autumn. Nominations are also invited for the other awards which will follow in the first half of next year.
Maurice and Vivien, who live in Lubenham, near Market Harborough, decided to set up Leicestershire First after hearing about the Beacon Fellowship, a national charity which awards Beacon Prizes to celebrate people who give their time, money, energy or skills to help others.
Maurice, 50, a vice-chairman at Citi, the international banking group, said: “I was invited to be High Sheriff of Leicestershire, a post I take up in 2009 for one year, and I thought we should put something back into the county.”
“Leicester and Leicestershire are amazingly diverse and, while that is a strength, we all need to work at being a more cohesive and more widely engaged community. We need to develop shared values, encourage commitment to and responsibility for each other and broadly agree on what makes a difference to lives in Leicestershire.”
“We as a family are funding the nine awards. The aim is to find the unsung heroes, the people doing things that are really worthwhile, and reward them by enabling them to achieve even more. By publicising their stories, Leicestershire First will show the wider public how beneficial such acts of giving – of time, energy, expertise, drive and leadership – are to everyone in the community.”
“The key is using the prize money to amplify the positive effects of the original person's acts, all done as visibly as possible. It is called Leicestershire First because, firstly, it is for all of Leicestershire to benefit from. It's also about putting your community and your county first.”
Leicestershire First is also a first for the Beacon Fellowship, which is giving its advice and the benefit of its experience to the new charity. Stephen Cohen, the chair of the Beacon Fellowship, said: “The Beacon Fellowship is delighted to support Leicestershire First and congratulates Maurice and Vivien Thompson and their team on this outstanding initiative. The Leicestershire First programme will be showcasing and rewarding notable contributions by individuals and groups to their communities, thereby promoting the culture of giving and extending the Beacon concept to Leicestershire. We wish Leicestershire First every success for the future.”
Maurice said: “To find the most deserving winners, Leicestershire First needs the people of Leicestershire to nominate people they know who do amazing, selfless things to help others.”
Leicestershire First has won the support of the Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Leicestershire MPs, the County and City Council, the current High Sheriff and faith and community leaders.
Paul Craven, the head teacher at the school where Leicestershire First’s inaugural award winner Helen Collins teaches, said: “As an inner city, multicultural school our youngsters come from a wide range of backgrounds, from the most affluent areas and from some of the more deprived areas. It is a challenge to make sure we can provide opportunities for young people to come together and understand each other’s backgrounds, the values with which they live, and to put them all together as a cohesive unit. We never lose sight of the fact that it is our job to provide young people with those opportunities so when they leave school they do so as good citizens and can contribute to Leicester and Leicestershire.
“The Leicestershire First awards are an excellent idea. It is right and proper that the large number of people who work exceptionally hard for our community can be recognised. Hopefully this will encourage others to be active in their community to benefit the people of Leicester and Leicestershire.”
And Helen herself said: “I know lots of people I will nominate for a Leicestershire First award. I’m sure everybody knows somebody who deserves the recognition and the chance to put £3,000 into a good Leicestershire cause.”