DanceSyndrome Dance Leader Becky Rich is thrilled to have been chosen as the winner of the Volunteer of the Year award at Lancashire County Council’s Pride Awards 2016.
The Pride awards are Lancashire County Council’s annual awards to celebrate the achievements of their staff and volunteers. The ceremony took place on Thursday 24th November at The Harris Museum in Preston, with a total of 6 awards being given out to individuals and teams who have shown commitment to helping the people of Lancashire.
Becky is 26 and lives in Fulwood. She became involved with DanceSyndrome in 2014. When Becky first started attending DanceSyndrome sessions she was a little bit nervous, which is quite normal when starting something new, but since taking part in the weekly workshops and DanceSyndrome’s unique ‘Dance by Example’ leadership training course, her confidence has grown enormously. This increase in confidence, combined with her improved dancing and leadership skills, enabled Becky to independently take on the role of Dance Leader at Gerrard Street Day Centre, separate from DanceSyndrome. She now runs her own dance class there every Friday.
It was because of this work that Becky was nominated for the Volunteer of the Year award by Garry Dawson, who is a Manager at Gerrard Street Day Centre, Preston. The award celebrates volunteers who have made a marked difference to the life of an individual or community and consistently deliver outstanding service.
Speaking about Becky, Garry said “She is an exuberant and vibrant volunteer delivering sessions that continuously grow and develop…. She has provided people with disabilities the opportunity to learn and develop skills, confidence and enjoy meaningful activity and has been a role model to the group…. Ultimately, each person involved is always excited to see Becky and fully participate and engage in something of great worth and positivity.”
Becky was delighted to be announced as the winner of the award! She said “To win Volunteer of the Year Award 2016 is a lot to take in. It is very exciting to win the award and knowing that I am making the lives of people with disabilities better is the best reward. Thank you again to Garry Dawson for nominating me, to all my dance students at Gerrard Street and also to all my fantastic friends at DanceSyndrome.”
DanceSyndrome Managing Director Dawn Vickers said “We are so incredibly proud of Becky! She has gone from strength to strength since joining us. She really excels in leadership, she’s a fantastic spokesperson and she’s a young woman on a mission to make Society take notice of the assets of people with learning disabilities. We have always known Becky has a lot of skills and talent to offer, but it is wonderful to see other people recognising that outside of her work with DanceSyndrome!”
After hearing about Becky winning this award, Granada Reports decided to do a feature about her, which was really amazing for DanceSyndrome to be involved with! You can watch this report on Becky’s award win online.
You can read more about Becky in her Case Study.
