VOLUNTEERS who help blind and partially sighted people in Solihull borough by reading the news for them are to receive a prestigious Queen’s Award – and attend Buckingham Palace.
Solihull Borough Talking Newspaper Association (SBTNA) has been informed it is to receive the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service 2020.
It means the group of volunteers based in Solihull is to be honoured with the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK.
SBTNA says it is a charity that offers the ‘freedom’ of its blind and partially sighted listeners to listen to local news whenever they choose.
SBTNA is one of 230 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year.
Marion Canning, Chairman of SBTNA said: “How delighted we are that our group’s work to allow the blind and partially sighted freedom to hear the news at a time of their choosing has been recognised.
“I pay tribute to the hard work and commitment of our volunteers throughout the years, some of whom have been with the charity for over 20 years. SBTNA made their first recordings in the 1970s.”
Representatives of SBTNA will receive the award from the Lord Lieutenant of West Midlands later this summer.
Two volunteers from the SBTNA will attend a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May 2021, along with other recipients of this year’s Award.
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 June 2, the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation.
Award winners this year include volunteer groups from across the UK, including a community shop in Cornwall, an environmental group in Swansea, a group working with refugees and vulnerable people in Stirling and a thriving community arts centre in County Down.
