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Northumberland's Top Village Revealed

The village of Allendale is Northumberland’s top village having been revealed as the winner of the 2006 Calor Northumberland Building Community Life competition.

A total of five villages were in line for prizes in the competition, which is being run in every county in England as part of the Calor Village of the Year® competition or as a stand alone competition thanks to support from Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). The villages of Allendale, Bamburgh, Falstone, Felton and Norham were shortlisted from an original tally of 15 entrants and judges had a very difficult task selecting just one winner.

Michelle O’Keefe, who organised the competition on behalf of Northumberland Rural Community Council, commented: “We were very impressed by both the number and standard of entries received this year in Northumberland and our judges found it particularly difficult to narrow the 15 entries down to a shortlist of five, let alone selecting one winner. However, Allendale is such a vibrant and thriving village with such an inclusive community that it just edged its way through to win the competition, gaining an impressive £500 prize money thanks to Defra’s support.”

As the 2006 Calor Building Community Life winner for Northumberland, the village of Allendale has the added honour of being nominated to go forward and represent the county in the prestigious Calor Village of the Year® for England competition. Over 40 villages representing counties through England will be taking part in the competition which has a total prize fund of over £39,000 and a top prize of £7,000. Allendale will initially be competing in the North England region of the competition against villages from Cheshire, Cumbria, Durham, Humber & Wolds, Lancashire, Tees Valley and Yorkshire.

Representatives of Allendale will be presented with their prize money and a framed commemorative certificate at a presentation event to be on Thursday 12th October. For further information please contact Michelle O’Keefe on 01207 529621, email admin1@durhamrcc.org.uk.

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Further press information from: Emma Flinn, Flent PR, a Connectpoint Company
tel: 0161 817 4200 / email: emma.flinn@connectpoint.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Calor Village of the Year®

Calor, the leading supplier of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) to those living and working in the countryside, has supported rural activities in England, Scotland and Wales for 20 years through its Rural Sponsorship programme, which includes the Calor Village of the Year® for England and Wales competitions and the Calor Scottish Community of the Year competition.

The Calor Village of the Year® for England competition, now in its tenth year, was founded and developed by Calor, and is organised and funded by the company on an annual basis.

Please note that Calor Village of the Year® is a registered trademark and should be referred to in full in all circumstances.

Entry to the Calor Village of the Year® for England competition is through the existing county competition network.

Following competition support in 2005, Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is once again providing Calor with additional funding in 2006 to enhance the community life element of the competition through the Building Community Life category. Defra’s special aim is to encourage the inclusion of all groups and individuals into the fabric of rural community life - building cohesive and mutually supportive communities. Defra’s involvement means that every village in England has the opportunity to enter the 2006 Calor Village of the Year® for England competition.

The national Calor Village of the Year® judges look for well-balanced, pro-active, caring communities which, irrespective of size, have made the best of local opportunities to maintain and enhance the quality of life for all residents.

The prize money for the national Calor Village of the Year® for England competition alone stands at over £39,000. First prize is £7,000 with £2,000 going to each of five regional winners. In addition, there are five category prizes of £500 within each region (covering Business, Environment, Care for Older People, Care for Young People and Information Communications Technology), and a prize of £750 for the winner of the Building Community Life category in each of the five regions. The five regional winners of the Information Communication Technology category are judged to find an overall winner, the award for which is £1,000. There is also, thanks to the Defra support, a prize of £2,000 for an overall Building Community Life winner, which is selected from the five regional winners.

For general information on the Calor Village of the Year® for England and Wales competitions:
email: info@calorvillageoftheyear.org, tel: 01962 629768, or visit: www.calorvillageoftheyear.org

For more information on the Calor Scottish Community of the Year competition:
visit: www.communityoftheyear.co.uk

For more information on Defra:
visit: www.defra.gov.uk or for information specific to rural affairs visit: www.defra.gov.uk/rural/default.htm

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