The winner of the Community Award was Di Fuller and Sid Valley HELP which she founded:
And as the Herald has shown, the organisation has been key to helping so many during the last eighteen months:
Hundreds helped by Sid Valley HELP during lockdown | sidmouththerald.co.uk
The scheme was set up in 2017 to provide links for those looking for and those providing voluntary help:
Sid Valley HELP > bringing organisations together to share resources | futuresforumvgs.blogspot.com
Sid Valley Help has been at the forefront of providing key information about health and social services – including mental health:
As covered by Di Fuller writing in the Herald:
Change can be a cause for anxiety as lockdown restrictions lift | sidmouthherald.co.uk
And Di has been out and about these last days:
Sidmouth’s charities raise game in time for Christmas | sidmouthherald.co.uk
… turning on the Christmas lights:
Sidmouth is looking festive after the switching on of the Christmas lights on Saturday, November 20. The lights are provided by Sidmouth Town Council in collaboration with Sidmouth Chamber of Commerce, and the official switch-on was performed by the winner of the Vision Group for Sidmouth’s Community Champion award, Di Fuller of Sid Valley Help.
Sidmouth lights up for Christmas | sidmouthherald.co.uk
Di has been very much part of the community this last decade – as this profile on the Sid Valley Help pages shows:
After a career as a teacher and a senior manager in further education, Di moved to Sidmouth in 2006 and worked as an educational consultant to schools and colleges until retiring in 2011. Di was chair of the GP’s Practice Patient Participation Group for five years and until 2020 she chaired the Sidmouth Health & Care Forum which brings together NHS, Social Services and voluntary sector organisations. Di set up and chairs the local Wellbeing and Health Action Team as well as Sid Valley Help.
And back in 2017, Di chaired a crucial meeting on the future of Port Royal:
Plans for Port Royal: public meeting Weds 23rd August | futuresforumvgs.blogspot.com
saveoursidmouth.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/sh-p1-3-250817.pdf