Mid Sussex Applauds 2021 honours our community champions

Contributed by Mid Sussex District Council.

The Mid Sussex Applauds Awards 2021 took place on Sunday (November 21), highlighting an amazing range of projects and people in our community.

Chairman of Mid Sussex District Council Margaret Belsey hosted the afternoon ceremony at the South of England Showground in Ardingly.

“It is fantastic to see so many people from our community, all be it spaced out, being appreciated and rewarded for the amazing work that happens in our district,” she said. “Being joined by nominators and sponsors in this positive celebratory event makes it a true celebration.”

The 2021 awards were made in eight categories.

People can read our interviews with some of the winners here.

Check out a gallery of all the photos from the event here.

The winner of the Business in the Community Award (sponsored by the Caravan and Motorhome Club) was Martyn Jupp of Jupp’s Fish and Chip Shop in Burgess Hill.

There were many kind donations of food to keep the team at Clair Hall Vaccination Centre going, but Martyn went above and beyond, donating more than 1,200 meals to date.

Copthorne Pharmacy (Medipharmacy Ltd) won second place with Jon Hair Salon coming in third.

The winner of the Good Sport Award was Phillip Coote, who joined East Grinstead Hockey Club in 1989.

The club’s ethos is to balance performance, grass roots and sport for all, while connecting sport, business, education, and community.

Phillip has represented all senior men’s sides and won several national medals. In a commercial club role since 1994, he has raised almost £1,000,000 in sponsorship.

Second place went to Jeremy Sandford, a peer trainer who works for Sussex Recovery College, and third place went to Crawley Down Gatwick Football Club.

The Lifetime Achievement Award winner was John Foster, who joined Citizens Advice in West Sussex (North, South, East) in 1991 after retiring from his job with the Bank of England.

He specialised in Employment and from 2003 he joined the County Court Helpdesk in Haywards Heath where he saved hundreds of people from losing their homes.

Citizens Advice in West Sussex (North, South, East) expressed their gratitude for all of John’s hard work during the 30 years he volunteered.

John sadly passed away earlier this year and his award was accepted on his behalf by his wife Jill and son Steve.

Second place went to Carey Tighe from Hurstpierpoint and third place went to Heather Warne, co-founder of Burgess Hill History Society.

The Stronger Communities Award (sponsored by CAE) was won by the Clair Hall Vaccination Volunteers.

This team turned up smiling in all weathers throughout the pandemic and made sure to welcome each patient and help them through the process.

Initially the volunteer team was organised by Lesley and Mike Bright and it is now co-ordinated by Joanna Head.

Second place went to The Kiln Project in Burgess Hill with Naomi McBain from the Hope charity winning third place.

John Thorpe was the winner of the Stronger Together Award (sponsored by The Orchards Shopping Centre).

John successfully led the community project to build Ansty Village Centre, which has been a real collaborative effort between users of the village hall, the sports and social club and cricket club.

Second place went to Anna Sharkey of the Bentswood Hub and third place went to Maddie Dubois who works at Ingfield Manor School.

The Young Volunteer of the Year Award (sponsored by Clarion Futures) was won by Olly Howland.

Olly was a volunteer co-presenter of the weekly Meridian FM Schools Out radio show from 2012 to 2018. He was also a young leader with East Grinstead 8th Scouts from 2018 to 2020.

Olly has been a volunteer at the Quarry Café since 2017, initially helping with the youth cafe then helping with the new Community Fridge.

Second place went to Beth Cromie of Bentswood Juniors youth group with litter-pick organiser Sabrina Hollister in third place.

Ken Grocott was the winner of the Take Pride in Mid Sussex Award (sponsored by ID Verde).

Pyecombe Parish Council nominated Ken for all his work ensuring the parish is kept clean and tidy. Ken has voluntarily undertaken the upkeep of the grounds at Pyecombe Church and litter picks throughout the parish.

Both Katy Burlace (The Remake Store) and Meg King (Scrapless) won joint second place.

The Young Achiever Award went to Carla Williams-Wood.

When Sussex Clubs for Young People first moved to the Bentswood Hub, Carla went along to assist with the ‘gardening’ of the flower planters.

Despite Carla facing her own personal challenges she continued to attend the Bentswood Seniors Youth Club and over the past 12 months moved from an attendee to a helper. Carla is now signed up as a Young Leader meaning she will be trained up to ‘properly’ assist the Youth Club.

At the Blackland Farm Camp in July she attended as a volunteer young leader and assisted with summer programme events.

The Peer Nominated Award, where nominees voted for their favourite in any category, went to Martyn Jupp.

The awards were presented by the sponsors and by High Sheriff of West Sussex Neil Hart.

The Mid Sussex Times is proud to be media partner of Mid Sussex Applauds.

There will be a picture gallery of the other winners on the Mid Sussex Times website soon.

Visit www.midsussex.gov.uk/applauds to find out more.