Introducing our Charity and Community Award Finalists
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By Tami Battle
As proud winners in the 2019 Cherwell Business Awards, Nicholsons have been working with the awards team this year as one of their sponsors. Now in their 9th year, the Cherwell Business Awards showcase business excellence across the Cherwell District through a range of categories. Nicholsons sponsored the ‘Charity and Community Award’, open to any charity, community group or social enterprise in the district, irrespective of size.
The application process was a humbling and eye-opening experience, with 16 fantastic applicants hoping to be considered.
We were able to carry out a few face-to-face interviews earlier in the year before COVID moved all interviews to video call or phone. Thanks to technology, we were still able to “meet” members of the team from every applicant, and were even able to look around most of the settings via video! Every single charity and community group we spoke to is doing remarkable things for their local community and helping a huge number of people. Narrowing the entrants down to just three finalists was really difficult, but in the end, we selected three charities that stood out for their phenomenal work across the Cherwell District: Clean Slate, Bicester Baby Bank and The Sunshine Centre.
Our Finalists
The first of our 3 finalists for the Cherwell Business Awards Charity and Community Award, 2020, is Clean Slate, who support survivors of physical, sexual, mental and emotional abuse in Oxfordshire. Founded in 2009 as the Eve Women’s Wellbeing Project, the charity developed into Clean Slate in 2015, offering services for both men and women in the local area.
Lockdown has resulted in a 10% increase in reports of domestic violence across Oxfordshire, with over 15,000 cases in just 15 weeks after the restrictions were imposed. Clean Slate is a vital support network for those affected by domestic abuse, with services encompassing counselling and support groups, and with every client having access to the longer-term support that is not available on the NHS.
To find out more about this incredible charity, or make a donation, click on either of the buttons below.
pre-loved items for babies and infants aged 0-5 and redistributes them to families in need.
Our third finalist for the Cherwell Business Awards Charity and Community Award, 2020, is The Sunshine Centre. The Sunshine Centre is a family centre at the top of Bretch Hill, Banbury, offering an enormous range of services to support the local community, from childcare and play sessions to adult learning, support for new parents, healthy eating courses, domestic abuse support and a whole host of others too! The Sunshine Centre has responded to the needs of its community over the 22 years since it started, adapting the services it offers to ensure it is offering the most support to the local families.
With between 20-30,000 people using the centre each year, this is a vital hub for so many people and has a tremendous impact on the people of Bretch Hill and beyond.
You can find out more about the centre on their website and can donate through two streams. All can be found through the buttons below.
