Community Action Dacorum receives the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service

Community Action Dacorum (CAD), the CVS Charity based in Hemel Hempstead, has been honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK. The award has been received for their work in overcoming barriers and improving the quality of life and wellbeing for individuals and community groups.

Community Action Dacorum provides a wide range of services and support aimed at helping local community groups of all types and underprivileged and disadvantaged individuals throughout the area. This award is a fitting recognition of the major part played by the over 150 dedicated volunteers who work alongside the 50 full and part time staff to make up the Charity’s team in delivering the organisation’s services.

CAD is one of 281 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of nominations and awards has increased year on year since the awards were introduced in 2002, 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. It is recognised as the MBE for voluntary groups. Winners are announced each year on 2 June – the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation. Award winners this year are wonderfully diverse. In addition to CAD, other recipients include volunteers helping people overcome mental health problems through sport, volunteers using caravans as mobile cafe/information centres in geographically remote locations and another group mentoring children who have a parent in prison.

Colin Gage, Chair of Trustees of Community Action Dacorum said: ‘We are thrilled and extremely proud to receive this prestigious award in recognition of the hard work, commitment and expertise shown by all our staff and volunteers in serving our local community. It is a well-deserved tribute to their dedication and expertise, and they have the appreciation and gratitude of everyone involved with the charity, including its stakeholders, its beneficiaries and the trustees.’

Over 200 guests gathered at Shendish Manor Hotel in Hemel Hempstead on Saturday 20 July for an afternoon garden party to celebrate the presentation to Community Action Dacorum (CAD) of the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service by the Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, Mr Robert Voss, CBE. on behalf of HM The Queen. The volunteers and staff of CAD were joined by distinguished guests from around the County including the Mayor of Dacorum, Councillor Terry Douris and local MP Sir Mike Penning.

In a speech to all volunteers and staff at the presentation the Lord Lieutenant expressed his pride in the tremendous efforts of the voluntary sector in Hertfordshire epitomised by the work done by CAD. He said how pleased he was that HM The Queen had decided to make the award to the Charity. Mr Voss outlined how rigorous the process of assessment for the award is and said that relatively few of those organisations nominated receive the award. This year only five organisations in Hertfordshire are award recipients. He went on to explain that Her Majesty had great affinity with Hertfordshire and always expressed a keen personal interest in what was happening in the County arising through the late Queen Mother’s upbringing at St Paul’s Walden Bury.

The Lord Lieutenant then presented an engraved glass Trophy and a Certificate signed personally by HM The Queen to Colin Gage, Chairman of the Charity’s Board of Trustees, and James Kemp a member of CAD’s Shopmobility team. Mr Voss explained that the Charity can in future use the Queen’s Award logo on all its stationery and publicity material.

Following thanks to the Lord Lieutenant, a celebratory cake, bearing the Queen’s Award logo, was ceremonially cut by Ian Hines, one of CAD’s longest serving volunteers and MaddieTrollope, the newest and youngest volunteer, a presenter on Radio Dacorum, the Charity’s internet radio station.

Over afternoon tea the Lord Lieutenant and the Mayor of Dacorum chatted with volunteers and staff asking them about their roles in the charity whilst a local choir, ‘the Choir on the Green’, entertained the assembled guests. The choir included another CAD volunteer, Lina Dyble, who is a volunteer driver in CAD’s Community Transport team.

Before leaving, the Lord Lieutenant recorded a short interview with Radio Dacorum which will be available on the Radio Dacorum website.

In taking his leave the Lord Lieutenant congratulated Colin Gage (Chair of Trustees) and Simon Aulton (CEO of the Charity) on receiving the award and said he looked forward to hearing reports of the Charity’s continued work in the voluntary sector in the future.