New Year Inspiration!

Bringing in the New Year on a high, young Sheffield volunteers of the HOPE Project have received an award in return for their dedication to the community. International Project Director Bethan, who alongside others has worked hard on the HOPE project for a number of years, has been named as a regional winner in the vInspired National Awards.

Now in its 5th year, the vInspired National Awards, in association with RBS Early Careers, are the biggest of their kind, celebrating the achievements and dedication of young volunteers and the youth workers who support them. They aim to challenge negative attitudes towards young people by highlighting the creativity, motivation and generosity of some of the most inspiring young volunteers in the country.

Bethan has been named regional winner for the Yorkshire and Humber region in the ‘Most Outstanding Social Entrepreneur’ category.  The social enterprise HOPE, started out as a jewellery making initiative which aimed to give the survivors of trafficking in Sheffield skills, confidence and a sense of self-worth. The team recognised that women who wanted to go into employment still faced large barriers, so set up HOPE Cosmetics, which offers three months paid employment to survivors to provide these women with the knowledge, training, and experience to be able to support themselves and their family financially in the future. Bethan is also employed by the University of Sheffield as a student social entrepreneur in residence to support and engage more students within social enterprise. 

Bethan says: “It’s such an honour for HOPE and myself to be presented with this award. We don’t volunteer for recognition, helping people is enough motivation. But it’s great to know that people appreciate what the teams do. Running this project has given me loads more confidence and really helped me to improve my outlook on life and it’s brilliant that these awards not only celebrate the benefits of volunteering but also inspire young people to volunteer and make a difference in their communities.”

Terry Ryall, vInspired CEO says: “Bethan and the team are a complete inspiration. As a regional winner in the Most Outstanding Social Entrepreneur category you need to demonstrate a complete dedication to volunteering and show how you have built positive relationships, brought people from diverse backgrounds together and strengthened communities. Bethan has done all this and more and should be immensely proud of her achievements.”

The regional winners will be shortlisted to national finalists in February 2014 with the national award winners revealed at a star studded awards ceremony at the Indig02 in London on 27th March 2014.